My new column at CJR examines how media hostility to Mitt Romney is helping to fuel the gaffe frenzies that frequently dominate coverage of his campaign and proposes a better approach to covering the horse race. Here's how it begins:
The profane confrontation between one of Mitt Romney’s press aides and reporters at the end of the presumptive GOP nominee’s difficult overseas trip has brought new attention to the way the 2012 race is being covered in the press—in particular, the media’s embarrassing gaffe obsession and the incentives it provides for campaigns to place ever-greater limitations on access to their candidates in unscripted settings.
This dynamic has been especially pathological for Romney. Politico’s Jonathan Martin best captured how the presumptive GOP nominee’s relationship with the media has devolved into a self-perpetuating cycle of gaffes and access restrictions...
While the gaffe patrol isn’t the only reason that the presidential campaigns are placing such tight limitations on the press, any discussion of those issues should acknowledge the role that the media’s seeming hostility toward Romney is playing in the coverage and in the access restrictions that have been imposed by his campaign.
Glad to see Brendan acknowledge that the media are treating Romney worse than Obama. However, I'm not sure that there's really a cycle caused by Romney's restrictions on meeting with the media. I think the media are just biased.
According to Howard Kurtz , the supposed gaffe that led to a Palestinian spokesman calling Romney a racist was based on showing this Palestinian an inaccurate copy of what Romney had said. Kurtz points out:
the AP reporter who committed this out-of-context drive-by, Kasie Hunt, not only took Romney out of context but never called the campaign for comment nor took advantage of a subsequent 4 1/2-hour flight to Poland, where [Romney strategist Stuart] Stevens sat near reporters for part of the trip.
Note that even though reporters don't have good access to Romney, they have plenty of access to his spokemen. Note also that President Obama seldom speaks to reporters and has had very few press conferences. Yet, there's no cycle of unfavorable reporting about Obama.
Arguably, Romney made no real gaffes. He pointed out some security problems with the London Olympics. His observations were accurate. He pointed to a cultural difference between Israelis and Palestinians -- a difference which is obvious.
Yet, according to one survey, 86 percent of stories about Romney's international visit wallowed in supposed "gaffes."
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/scott-whitlock/2012/08/03/bozell-slams-shocking-attempt-media-kneecap-mitt-romney#ixzz22Vn40sAa
Posted by: David in Cal | August 03, 2012 at 03:12 PM