National Press Gets Little Time from McCain

[Hope And Change]

August 09, 2008
Categories: http://dyn.politico.com/blogs/michaelcalderone/index.cfm/category/JohnMcCain">John McCain

McCain to national press: You've got 38 minutes

There’s no question that John McCain has made a http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/04/AR2008080400431.html">major change in his media strategy. The candidate that once spent hours cracking jokes with reporters, now significantly limits access for the national press corps.

The presumptive Republican nominee spent a total of 38 minutes talking to print, television, magazine, and radio reporters from national publications over the past week, according to the count on my recorder.

National reporters were given one opportunity to ask questions at a Friday afternoon press conference in Rogers, Arkansas. Otherwise, McCain delivered two statements to the full press corps totaling 9 minutes and 46 seconds and offering no chance for questions and two statements to a select press pool.

It’s worth noting that the only national reporters I observed called on by the campaign during the press conference were either relatively new to the campaign (myself included) or television news embeds.

Those totals don’t include numerous interviews with local media delivered in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and South Dakota.


-- Lisa Lerer


http://www.politico.com/blogs/michaelcalderone/0808/McCain_to_national_press_Youve_got_38_minutes.html">Full article here

[TwilightGardener]

1. Afraid of gaffes, only want softball questions from locals (amateurs).

[mediaman007]

2. A lesson in "how to complain about unfair press coverage":

stack the deck, then whine!