The Media is Backing Kerry.....and Edwards......

[deminflorida]

The Northern Liberal, and the Trial Lawyer....

But they ignore Clark still.....


Who wants to make a bet....


Nader will enter the race soon, and he will have to fight off the reporters all the way up to election day. They will give him SUPER coverage, all the way through.


You Democrats better wake up. We're in for a trouncing come November.

Any takers on that BET?

[jenk]

1. they earned this coverage

you'll never get the media on your side by bashing them

[jpgpenn]

6. Edwards "earned" his coverage?

You measn from that win in the state he was born in and is now nieghbors of or was it the more then 3 third place showings thru other states?

Face it Edwards is the media puppet boy. The lack experience in anything dealing with leading this nation.

[mlawson]

7. Oh, well. That convinced me...

Now I will have to support *your* candidate! :eyes:

Sarcasm off, I really like Clark, but gratuitous attacks on my candidate are unlikely to lure me over.

[Tom Rinaldo]

11. Clark came in ahead of Edwards and Dean, 5 of 8 times each so far.

For all the talk about the horse race, and who is hot, and who is not, those are the facts so far as determined by actual voters.

All the while since voting began Clark has had to fight to be heard over the media fascination about Dean's campaign (I'm not saying all the coverage has been helpful to Dean, just that it has eaten up a lot of air time and print space) and, more to the point, the media anointment of John Edwards as the man with momentum and all their continual propping up of Edwards as the only man with a chance to beat Kerry.

When they even mention Clark it is in the context of whether or not his campaign is already hopeless. Hell Fox doesn't even ask the question, they were saying Clark was dead even before New Hampshire.

Now the question of how to "get the media on your side" is another can of worms, isn't it? Nonetheless I take issue with the assumption that the others have earned coverage but Clark hasn't. Dean to date has shown some strength in New England and, to a lesser extent, the West (I know he has more support in upcoming states like Wisconsin and California), Edwards has shown some support in New England and the South. Clark has shown some support in New England, the South, and the West. Thus Clark to date has shown broader national support than either Edwards or Dean, and Clark has more first and second place finishes than both of those men also. So why hasn't Clark earned at least equal coverage?

[blm]

2. Nope. The media muted and marginalized Kerry and Edwards for months.

They declared their candidacies dead and irrelevant which dried up their fundraising, benefitting Dean and Clark's campaign coffers.

THIS is why the media tried to kill Kerry's candidacy early on.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 2, 2003

Kerry Seeks to Reverse FCC's "Wrongheaded Vote"
Commission decision may violate laws protecting small businesses; Kerry to file Resolution of Disapproval

Washington, DC - Senator John Kerry today announced plans to file a "Resolution of Disapproval" as a means to overturn today's decision by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to raise media ownership caps and loosen various media cross-ownership rules.

Kerry will soon introduce the resolution seeking to reverse this action under the Congressional Review Act and Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act on the grounds that the decision may violate the laws intended to protect America's small businesses and allow them an opportunity to compete.

As Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Kerry expressed concern that the FCC's decision will hurt localism, reduce diversity, and will allow media monopolies to flourish. This raises significant concerns about the potential negative impacts the decision will have on small businesses and their ability to compete in today's media marketplace.

In a statement released earlier today regarding the FCC's decision, Kerry said:
"Nothing is more important in a democracy than public access to debates and information, which lift up our discourse and give Americans an opportunity to make honest informed choices. Today's wrongheaded vote by the Republican members of the FCC to loosen media ownership rules shows a dangerous indifference to the consolidation of power in the hands of a few large entities rather than promoting diversity and independence at the local level. The FCC should do more than rubber stamp the business plans of narrow economic interests.

"Today's vote is a complete dereliction of duty. The Commissioners are well aware that these rules greatly influence the competitive structure of the industry and protect the public's access to multiple sources of information and media. It is the Commission's responsibility to ensure that the rules serve our national goals of diversity, competition, and localism in media. With today's vote, they shirked that responsibility and have dismissed any serious discussion about the impact of media consolidation on our own democracy." 

[George_Bonanza]

3. In the current issue of MacLean's

A Canadian news magazine, there's a not-so flattering article about Kerry, although it's a smear job.

Can you provide any sort of proof that the media is specifically targeting Clark and Dean? HD was attacked b/c he raised so much money (almost twice as Kerry) before Iowa, and was so clearly ahead of the rest. There's no anti-idealism in the media attacks against Dean, unless you can somehow provide a smoking gun.

As for Clark, I am a fan of his, yet what has he done to warrant the kind of attention that Kerry and Edwards won? JK has won 7/9 primaries, or a 78% victory rate, and Edwards has strongly won one primary (unlike Clark) and finished very strongly in at least 3 others. I don't mean to disrespect Clark supporters, but there's only so much media time. Why should Clark be bigger news than victorious Kerry or Edwards?

[Ivote]

4. Maybe because Clark

has only been in it for 5 months? How long have the others had to put forth their viewpoints?
Edwards wasnt even going to run for his own Senate seat.
We wouldnt be in this mess if it werent for the fact that Edwards and Kerrey also voted for just about all of bushes bills and didnt try to stop it.

If you want a history of their votes go to www.c-span.org and look up their records and then make your decision.

I will continue to back Clark all the way.

[deminflorida]

5. I didn't say I dislike John Kerry...

But anybody that does not see the way the media foams at the mouth on their preference of candidates to run against Bush is Blind......

1st place DEAN - they have the video, of the scream in Iowa. The crazy, angry New England Liberal.

2nd place Kerry - Michael Dukakis reborn, the most liberal Senator in Mass. (Heard the GOP talk radio playing this one this morning...)

3rd place Edwards - The politically inexperienced Trial Lawyer.

4th place Clark - The Man who allowed Michael Moore to Bush a Deserter. (That horrible tasteless bastard).

[deminflorida]

8. The records of the front-runners are what the media is really

trying to cover-up....the votes by Edwards and Kerry have placed our party in dire-straits. They both seem tobe good at keep their political fingers in the wind, I guess that's why they're winning.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

16. In order to get "not-so-flattering" coverage of Kerry one has to go

to Canada?


Well there you go.

[D G]

9. Look, I agree that Clark could use more media coverage

but Kerry and Edwards are getting coverage because they are placing 1st and 2nd in primaries.

I wish there was more coverage of Clark's victories, but so far Kerry's and Edwards have been bigger. You can't blame the media for covering people who win elections.

[George_Bonanza]

14. I agree

For Clark to get Kerry-level or Dean-level media attention, he has to A) Win a primary by at least one percentage point or B) Raise a record amount of dollars.

[Tweed]

17. Excuse me? Edwards is being covered due to better placement then Clar

Let's review the 1st and 2nd place finishes, shall we?
Edwards:
Iowa: Edwards 2nd
NH: N/A
South Carolina: Edwards 1st
Delware: N/A
North Dakota: Clark 2nd
Missouri: Edwards 2nd
Oklahoma: Clark 1st
Edwards 2nd
Arizona: Clark 2nd
New Mexico: Clark 2nd

Hmmm.... looks like Clark and Edwards are tied to me! Maybe the edge goes to Clark considering he has had more recent success.

[D G]

18. When I said "bigger" I meant in terms of delegates won

I don't have those numbers at hand, but I'm pretty sure Edwards is still ahead in that arena. (I know Dean is up there too, but I don't care about him.)

I agree that Clark has made an excellent showing, comparable to Edwards, but unfortunately his win in Oklahoma was not by a large margin. I want to see more Clark in the media as much as any other Clark supporter, believe me, but I think there are some perfectly legitimate reasons behind what's going on.

Edit: As an aside, I think part of why Edwards is making news is that he seems to be coming out of nowhere. That might just be my perspective, though - I paid very little attention to him until the Iowa caucus. Then again, Clark had a big media bounce when he entered the race - and didn't he do it the same day as Edwards officially announced his candidacy, thus keeping the latter news from making a big splash? Wild stuff...

[PurityOfEssence]

10. I respectfully disagree

I've seen reports on CNN and MSNBC today that refer to Kerry winning 5 contests with Clark and Edwards each winning one. I don't think that's "pro-Clark" bias; I presume that they were going alphabetically.

These are shorthand headlines. At best, Clark won Oklahoma by less than a half of a percent, and Kerry wasn't incredibly far behind the two of them. Edwards took more than 45% in South Carolina; he beat Kerry by more than 15 points. By this calculus, Edwards did considerably better than Clark yesterday. Remember: Clark entered the race as the front-runner or at least a highly touted one, so he's been on the decline. Edwards was always an underdog, and Iowa was a story. (Biased though the media is, A STORY generally wins out.) New Hampshire was a bit of a hiccup for Edwards, but Clark only beat him there by less than four tenths of a percent, and Clark had been way ahead of him.

I feel for the Clark supporters, and it's frustrating that he's hanging in there, since he's soaking off strength from my guy, but I don't think he's getting any rougher deal than he deserves. America loves a winner, and Kerry's all the rage right now; America loves a winner even more than it loves revelling in the downfall of the cocky.

Quite frankly, I think more should be said about the fact that Edwards solidly clobbered Kerry in South Carolina, even with Sharpton soaking off votes. Part of the essential theory of a Clark candidacy is that he'll do well in the south and with the military; in this light, South Carolina was a total disaster for him.

Clark also benefitted from A LOT of publicity in the media early on; he was the knight in shining armor at one point, and he hasn't quite lived up to the expectations. Sure, the expectations may have been high, but these are normal human dynamics.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

12. You are betting that Bush will win?

Yes, I would take that bet if there were any way to do so.

[Straight Shooter]

13. I think you're right, dem in florida. Sad, but true

Edwards appears to be pretty clean as far as face value to the Americans, but so is Clark. Kerry, on the other hand, will give Rove a lot of material to work with.

I will support Clark. Hey, maybe I'm prejudiced in his favor, though. I've worked with a lot of lawyers.

Bottom line, Clark and Edwards are more marketable in terms of family values. That still means a lot to Americans.

[DjTj]

15. I'm getting sick of hearing Media, Media, Media...

...I used to think the media had too much power also, but then I spent a few months working in a Press Office on Capitol Hill.

The truth is that reporters are just as busy and working just as hard as everyone else. They don't have time to get together and come up with big conspiracies. They LOVE it when you write their stories for them. If a certain candidate isn't getting enough press coverage, I would blame their Communications Director and Press Secretary.

Right now, I am collecting TV transcripts and monitoring my local media for the Edwards campaign. What are you doing to help Clark?

Don't come here and whine. DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.