Media whining
I like Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post. He generally is very fair in his coverage of politics as well as being interesting. His column today discusses "Palin's war on the media." The gripe appears to be that he does not think Palin should complain about coverage she thinks is unfair.
Also, her complaints about the media were not whiny. She was responding to a question and she discussed how she was going to use the media unfairness to make her tougher. It was an interview and she answered the question honestly. Isn't that what the media expects?
...But in that interview Palin makes a very compelling case for her understanding of the problems of voters in that region with her own story of having to make difficult choices on health care before she and her husband got union jobs. How did Cillizza miss that?Her latest jab at the press came last evening in an interview with conservative talk radio show host Hugh Hewitt. (Full disclosure: The Fix is an occasional guest on Hugh's show.)
"I have a degree in journalism also, so it surprises me that so much has changed since I received my education in journalistic ethics all those years ago," Palin said in response to a question from Hewitt about alleged gotcha questions being asked of her by ABC's Charlie Gibson and CBS's Katie Couric.
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Press criticism is the ultimate process story. That is, it has to do with the rules of the game -- rules most average voters have absolutely no idea even exist. Most people, especially in a time of massive economic uncertainty like we are currently experiencing, want to hear about how the candidates (and their vice presidential nominees) are going to make every day life better. Refereeing whether or not the press is being fair to the candidate is not typically in the purview of the average undecided voter.
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She needs to show these undecideds -- particularly white, working class voters in places like Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania -- why she and McCain are the better choice to represent their interests in Washington. And, to do that, she needs to make a convincing case on issues, ranging from the economy to health care to the war in Iraq.
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Also, her complaints about the media were not whiny. She was responding to a question and she discussed how she was going to use the media unfairness to make her tougher. It was an interview and she answered the question honestly. Isn't that what the media expects?
The questions about the Bush Doctrine, about her foreign policy credentials, about which regulations her running mate had promoted, about which media she used to read, etc., were not "gotchas." They are all relevant, and anyone of presidential caliber should have had straight answers. She did not. Instead she was evasive and defensive. This is not spin. This is obvious to the casual youtube viewer.
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