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Election 2008
With communications policy playing a role in presidential politics, below please find a running list of stories we've summarized in our headlines service. If you are aware of coverage we've not included below, please contact us at headlines AT (@) benton DOT (.) org
McCain adviser to appear on "The Communicators"
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 29, 2008 - 9:01amLast updated: August 29, 2008 - 9:02am
Senior McCain campaign policy adviser Douglas Holtz-Eakin will appear on C-CPAN's "The Communicators" on Saturday. He'll say that, if elected President, John McCain is likely to push for a la carte cable pricing.
McCain Seems To Have Obama Beat in One Arena
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 28, 2008 - 11:39amLast updated: August 28, 2008 - 11:39am
Sen Barack Obama (D-IL) appears to many people to be running a far more tech-wise campaign than his opponent, with his use of text messages to announce his vice-presidential candidate and the creation of his own vibrant social network, My.BarackObama.com.
Obama's VP text message reached 2.9 million people
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 28, 2008 - 11:38amLast updated: August 28, 2008 - 11:38am
The Obama campaign's highly anticipated text message announcing Joe Biden as the presumptive Democratic nominee's running mate reached 2.9 million U.S. mobile subscribers last weekend, making it "one of the most important text messages" ever and "one of the most successful" branding efforts using mobile devices, according to Nic Covey, director of insights for research firm Nielsen Mobile.
Monday Convention Coverage Draws 22.3 Million Viewers
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 28, 2008 - 11:34amLast updated: August 28, 2008 - 11:35am
The 10 to 11 p.m. hour on the first night of the Democratic National Convention attracted approximately 22.3 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research, compared with the approximately 18.5 million who watched it in 2004.
AT&T has high profile presence at Dem convention
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 28, 2008 - 11:33amLast updated: August 28, 2008 - 11:34am
Telecommunications giant AT&T is virtually everywhere at the Democratic National Convention, wining and dining delegates and members of Congress with a relentless schedule of luncheons and evening parties. AT&T has the most high-profile corporate presence in Denver.
Dem Delegates Back Clarifying Public Interest Obligations
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 28, 2008 - 11:32amLast updated: August 28, 2008 - 11:33am
It's official, support for Network Neutrality, media diversity, public interest obligations, and free airtime for candidates are officially enshrined in the Democratic platform. The platform, which was approved by the Democratic Convention delegates Monday, was put up for a vote by a former top media executive, ex-Discovery Channel President Judith McHale, who is co-chair of the platform committee.
Jon Stewart Hails Newspapers' Campaign Coverage -- Hits Cable News
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 28, 2008 - 11:31amLast updated: August 28, 2008 - 11:32am
"Daily Show" host Jon Stewart ripped cable news networks but hailed newspapers for their political coverage. Yet Stewart observed that newspapers are fighting "a losing battle because they're getting overshadowed." Among other descriptives, he labeled the cable news networks "gerbil wheels." Other highlights from his talk, as observed by Howard Kurtz of The Washington Post: Stewart hit Fox News in particular as "an appendage of the Republican Party." He called Fox's "fair and balanced" slogan an insult "to people with brains.
Can Obama Turn Friends into Voters?
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 28, 2008 - 11:30amLast updated: August 28, 2008 - 11:31am
If online "friends" were a proxy for voters, Barack Obama could accept the Presidency, and not just the Democratic nomination, on Aug. 28. With more than 1.8 million supporters on Facebook and MySpace, Obama's base on the leading U.S. social networks is nearly seven times that of John McCain. But history hasn't shown that online supporters turn out in November.
It Takes Tech to Elect a President
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 28, 2008 - 11:29amLast updated: August 28, 2008 - 11:29am
Technology and an appreciation of how to use it have always been important to political campaigns. Franklin Delano Roosevelt used radio to get his message across effectively to voters. Lyndon Johnson rode a helicopter to get him around Texas in his famous race for the Senate.
Veepstakes!
Submitted by Benton Foundation on August 28, 2008 - 11:28amLast updated: August 28, 2008 - 11:28am
For the week of Aug 18-24, speculation about Sen Barack Obama's choice for Vice President -- which centered on Sen Joe Biden (D-Delaware), Virginia Governor Tom Kaine and Indiana Senator Evan Bayh -- accounted for 27% of all campaign news, according to the Campaign Coverage Index from the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism.
