Reporters versus People who Think Their Job is to Manage the Nation Behind the Scenes
During America's good government fad (roughly WWII to the 1980s) a candidate couldn't refuse to take a single question from a reporter during the last month of a campaign because the reporters would take it out on the candidate.
If the candidate won't fill column inches then reporters are left to dig dirt. Reporters would say unflattering things about the freeze-out in print to pressure the candidate.
But today it is assumed that the editors will manufacture two-sided news no matter what reporters turn in, and most reporters (hating being edited) have internalized that editorial function into their raw reporting (!)
The media' bluff was called long ago. (Since media is plural, is that the right way to express the possessive?)
No matter what the candidate does, the media will never say he is simply unfit for office because he refuses to discuss his plans. And without that card in reserve the media has nothing.
