Meet the Press

MEET THE PRESS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Ruth Marcus marcusr@washpost.com]
[Commentary] By some important measures, George W. Bush is more accessible to the reporters who cover him than are some of the leading candidates to succeed him -- most notably Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Through the end of September, the president had given 25 news conferences this year and answered questions from reporters in 19 less-extensive sessions. By contrast, Clinton and Obama have only occasionally held the kind of "press avail" that for other candidates, and in previous years, has been a common, often daily, occurrence. Politicians, with the possible exception of John McCain, don't subject themselves to reporters because they enjoy it -- they do it because it's in their self-interest. Candidates eager, desperate even, for coverage are happy to make themselves available to reporters who have an interest in questioning them. Those in a stronger position don't want to risk veering off message. This election isn't the first, and won't be the last, in which the inevitable tensions surface between the media's clamor for constant and instant access and the campaigns' desire to maintain control.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/06/AR200711...
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