The results of the presidential primary race are in, and the New York Times’ media columnist has declared a loser: journalism. “Wrong, wrong, wrong,” writes Jim Rutenberg. “To the very end, we got it wrong.” … By “we,” however, it soon becomes clear that Rutenberg does not mean journalists like […] Read more »
The Republican Horse Race Is Over, and Journalism Lost
Wrong, wrong, wrong — to the very end, we got it wrong. … You can continue to blame all the wrong calls this year on new challenges in telephone polling when so many Americans — especially the young — do not have landlines and are therefore hard to track down. […] Read more »
The ‘nasty effect,’ and why Donald Trump supporters mistrust the media
Donald Trump supporters and the mainstream media have a well-practiced routine that goes like this: The media report that the Republican presidential front-runner said or did something untrue/offensive/dangerous, and then supporters reject the reports as dishonest/exaggerated/insignificant. Which leads to the confounding question for journalists: Why does critical coverage of Trump […] Read more »
‘Momentum’ By Any Other Name . . .
… Campaigns and the political press ascribe the force of “momentum” whenever a candidate wins big (and sometimes even when he or she finishes second) in primaries and caucuses. The thinking is that success breeds success, and one win will lead to others. But is it true? CONT. On The Media Read more »
Why the Media Have Been Greasing Trump’s Wheels
How to explain the indispensable role of the news media in lubricating the unfathomable rise of Donald Trump? … Never has a political aspirant so successfully mastered the media. Both fascinated and appalled, the country’s top news organizations have lavished Trump with attention as, by far, the most colorful, interesting […] Read more »
Campaign Exposes Fissures Over Issues, Values and How Life Has Changed in the U.S.
The 2016 presidential campaign has exposed deep disagreements between – and within – the two parties on a range of major policy issues. But these divisions go well beyond the issues and extend to fundamentally different visions of the way that life in the United States has changed. CONT. Pew Read more »