-elections are the bedrock of democracy

-way for voters to choose leaders and hold politicians accountable

-mechanism by which largest number of Americans participate, roughly half in recent elections

-not a big number, but larger than other forms of participation, such as writing letters, contacting govt officials, making campaign contributions, or going to rallies (less than 10 % engage in these forms)

-unrepresentative activists in terms of income and ideology

-given the importance of election campaigns for the political process and policymaking, it is not surprising that the way reporters cover modern campaigns is controversial

-voters have limited first-hand contact with candidates or campaign
-dependent on reporters for information on candidates
-intermediary role for reporters and broadcasters creates controversy over how well the media cover the campaign, whether they are covering the correct things, how much influence they have, and what they can do differently in the future

-are reporters biased (charge of liberal press)

-so today, we will look at the media role in campaigns in order to see what problems need to be addressed

How Well Do Reporters Cover Campaigns?
-number of studies of how reporters do their jobs

-most of the research is pretty critical

-focus on the game and the horserace

-who is ahead and who is behind

-dominance of polls
-fascination with conflict frame

-overemphasis on personality--candidate efforts to humanize themselves using family and kids

-overemphasis on personal scandal
What Should They Be Covering?
-if there are problems with what they do cover, what should they be covering

-substantive stakes of the election--key to democratic elections (future vision)

-issues--how does the campaign affect ordinary people

-leadership--does the candidate have the skill and character traits necessary to be a successful president or member of Congress
-why aren't these things covered? Competition for viewers and subscribers. Americans not strongly interested in politics

-Pew Research Center asked voters about 13 different situations and whether the press should report on these things.

-percentages shown below reveal how many people think the press should almost always report on particular situations

-Spouse abuse, 71%

-Income tax evasion, 65

-Exaggerated military record, 61

-Exaggerated academic record, 61

-Ongoing affair, 43

-Homosexuality, 38

-Past drinking problem, 36

-Cocaine use, 35

-Psychiatric treatment, 28

-Past affair, 23

-Marijuana use, 23

-Antidepressant use, 20

-Had abortion, 17

-nonlegal matters involving candidate's underage children or family members (Jenna Bush)

-current extramarital sexual activity as long as it is discreet and non-compulsive

-sexual orientation

-drug or alcohol abuse that was a youthful indulgence or adult abuse that is at least 10 years old (Bush DWI)

-reporters are very interested in politics and some even are interested in policymaking

-early coverage notes policy positions, but voters not paying attention (in summer of presidential year, only 15% say they are following election closely)

-that percentage raises during fall and produces turnout of around 50 percent

-by then reporters are tired of covering the same policy proposals, not new news

-what is new is the polls, the horserace, the game, and candidate mistakes

-so just when voters are tuning in, they are getting the least substantive material about the election campaign

-yes, in terms of political views

-70% vote Democratic

-most range from moderate to liberal

-well-educated and Northeast bias

b) doesn't prove there is a liberal press

-research shows little, consistent liberal bias in reporting

-constraints of professional norms and training

c) real bias is toward sensationalism, not ideology

-example of Bush in 1988 versus 1992

-example of Clinton in 1992 versus thereafter (Whitewater, Filegate)

-complaints about press conservatism

-Murdoch ownership of Fox network

-Brian Mullen research during Reagan campaign

-taped nightly news broadcasts (37 separate segments)

-segments shown to randomly chosen viewers

-rated facial expressions of Rather, Brokaw, and Jennings

-judge "emotional content" on 21 point scale running from low of "extremely negative" to high of "extremely positive"

-Rather-same reaction with Rep (average of 10.37) and Dem (average of 10.46)

-Brokaw--similar numbers with Rep (average of 11.5) and Dem (average of 11.21)

-Jennings--statistically significant differences; more positive with Reagan (average of 17.44) than Mondale (average of 13.38)

-more substantive and issue-oriented, but less influential because of drop in credibility

-example of Fox Network News and conservative tilt--FAIR study showed 71% of guests on Fox News shows were conservative compared to CNN (33%)

-similar to European press

a) overall coverage

-49% excellent or good coverage of fall campaign

-31% only fair

-11% poor

b) 28% felt media coverage biased against an individual candidate, compared to 58% who did not

-object of most bias: Bush, 49%; Gore 25%, and Nader, 17%

What Can Reporters Do Differently
-less focus on game and strategy
-show what campaign means for voters personally in daily lives
-reduce Noah's Ark style coverage (two by two conflict)
-spend less time on campaign bus and engage in more investigative journalism
-tragedy of commons metaphor--problem not bad intentions of reporters, but financial pressures on collective industry owing to market competition which create incentives for bad behavior

Kathleen Hall Jamieson, Dirty Politics, Oxford University Press, 1992

Thomas Patterson, Out of Order: An Incisive and Boldly Original Critique of the New Media's Domination of America's Political Process, Vintage Books, 1994

James Fallows, Breaking the News: How the Media Undermine American Democracy, Pantheon Books, 1996