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Mark Jurkowitz
Who You Running With? Campaign Coverage June 16-22
Submitted by Benton Foundation on June 24, 2008 - 7:38amA key narrative in last week’s campaign focused not on Barack Obama and John McCain themselves, but on two people whose public roles reflect crucial challenges facing the candidates -- Michelle Obama and George Bush.
Obama Makes More News Than McCain
Submitted by Benton Foundation on June 17, 2008 - 9:54pmLast updated: June 19, 2008 - 12:58pm
As the general election semi-officially kicks-off, the differences between Barack Obama and John McCain on issues ranging from the economy to Iraq constituted the media’s main campaign narrative. Together, the debates over several key issues accounted for almost one-third -- 29% -- of the campaign newshole, as measured by PEJ’s Campaign Coverage Index for June 9-15.
Obama Wins, but Clinton Drives the narrative
Submitted by Benton Foundation on June 10, 2008 - 7:31amIn the final week of the 2008 Democratic primary campaign, Sen Barack Obama (D-IL) was the top newsmaker. In all he appeared as a dominant or significant factor in 77% of the campaign stories, according to PEJ’s Campaign Coverage Index for June 2-8.
Iraq Again a Campaign Issue
Submitted by Benton Foundation on June 3, 2008 - 7:51amAs has been the case for about a month, the media’s campaign narrative last week proceeded on two tracks. Track one was the fiercely passionate endgame to the Democrats’ long and hard-fought nomination battle.
Character and the Primaries of 2008
Submitted by Benton Foundation on May 29, 2008 - 8:32pmLast updated: May 30, 2008 - 7:20am
Sen Barack Obama (D-IL) has not enjoyed a better ride in the press than rival Sen Hillary Clinton (D-NY), according to a new study of primary coverage by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism and the Joan Shorenstein Center on Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University.
McCain Reenters Campaign Narrative
Submitted by Benton Foundation on May 28, 2008 - 7:39amFor May 19-25, the dominant media narrative on the state of the race remained the same -- that Sen Barack Obama (D-IL) was on the cusp of securing a hard-fought nomination.
Clinton Wins Battle, Obama Wins War
Submitted by Benton Foundation on May 20, 2008 - 7:52amWhen he showed up to endorse Sen Barack Obama (D-IL) at a Michigan rally on May 14, former Sen John Edwards (D-NC) not only made news, he helped change the story line.
First Spouse: Comparing Coverage of Bill, Michelle and Cindy
Submitted by Benton Foundation on May 14, 2008 - 6:58pmSince January 1, the husband of candidate Hillary Clinton (D-NY) appeared as a lead newsmaker in nearly four times as many stories (298) as the spouses of Sen Barack Obama (D-IL) and Sen John McCain (R-AZ) combined (78).
Is The Fat Lady Humming?
Submitted by Benton Foundation on May 12, 2008 - 8:11pmIn a campaign with more twists than a Twilight Zone episode, the media all but officially pronounced Sen Barack Obama (IL) the Democratic nominee last week after he emerged with a big win in North Carolina and a near-tie in Indiana.
Is "The Daily Show" 'News'?
Submitted by Benton Foundation on May 9, 2008 - 7:03amWhen Americans last year were asked to name the journalist they most admired, showing up at No. 4 on the list was a comedian. Jon Stewart, host of The Daily Show on Comedy Central and former master of ceremonies at Academy Award shows, tied in the rankings with anchormen Brian Williams, Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather and cable host Anderson Cooper.
