The Media Myth of Obama's Negative Campaign

[Bill USA]

http://www.opednews.com/articles/The-Media-Myth-Surrounding-by-Eric-Boehlert-120809-439.html

In his most recent column, the New York Times' Ross Douthat repeated a common media charge about what a harsh campaign President Obama is running this year. Dubbing the president "Mr. Negative," Douthat bemoaned what he saw as Obama's nasty Nixonian streak and a campaign that Douthat claims "started out negative and has escalated to frank character assassination."

This kind of dire rhetoric has become quite common among Beltway pundits and reporters, along with right-wing commentators. Collectively, they have formed a tight-knit narrative about what an almost shockingly negative campaign Obama is running, and how the harsh tone represents the polar opposite of Obama's feel-good run in 2008.

The media chatter really has become deafening. A New York Times news report last month emphasized how both campaigns have gone "relentlessly negative," while a Miami Herald column trumpeted Obama's "seek and destroy" campaign style, built around a "negative onslaught" targeting Romney. (The Herald piece suggested Obama was "doing the same" thing to Romney that the Swift Boat Veterans had done to John Kerry in 2004.) Meanwhile, The Atlantic dubbed Obama's run a "nasty" and "bare knuckle" campaign fueled by "brutal" tactics.

In fact, when the Romney campaign made an ad complaining about how negative Obama's re-election run has been, it cobbled together on-air quotes from CBS's Bob Schieffer, Time's Mark Halperin and the New York Times' David Brooks, all of whom have gone on TV lamenting the tone of Obama's campaign.




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[ejpoeta]

1. here is my definition of negative campaigning:

when you LIE. if you are telling the truth and have proof to back it up it is not negative campaigning. Not 'proof' like some people say either.

[Zoeisright]

7. That's exactly right.

Every one of Willard's commercials is negative because it's a lie.

[Scootaloo]

2. Negative campaign = Democrat not endorsing the Republican n/t

[Life Long Dem]

3. Give 'em Hell Obama!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Give_%27em_Hell,_Harry!

"Truman delivered a speech attacking the Republicans. During the speech a supporter yelled out "Give 'em Hell, Harry!". Truman replied, "I don't give them Hell. I just tell the truth about them and they think it's Hell." Subsequently, "Give 'em Hell, Harry!" became a lifetime slogan for Truman supporters."

[chille1]

4. Billionaires and Millionaires will go broke trying to unseat President Obama !

This is pathetic absolutely pathetic ,So lets get it straight who's actually crying here !
1. the Koch Brothers
2. Ruppert Murdock
3. Sheldon Abelson
Just of the top of my head,you see the Re thugs are so use to drowning their opponents with lies and distortions
that by the time of election the truth doesn't matter, They underestimated the Presidents willingness to go there with them
and at the same time expose the whole bunch of them for what they are , I am proud I lived at this period in time because
whether people except or reject the truth is known by every American from California to New York ,and its one of those times
in America when America has to look at its self for what we as a nation have done by electing officials with partisan agendas
you get what you vote for ! and what we got was a Congress bent on racist motivation at the expense of anyone who bucks their
system of thinking And like the President has stated America has a choice to make M.S.M will say whatever their boss tells them on the right and the left ,what has them the most upset is that with all the money in the world at their disposal they can not buy the TRUTH!so whine ,whine ,whine, !
In other words the pundits can Kiss our collective A_ _ all 99% of us.

[AverageJoe90]

8. The only thing they've got now is dirty tricks.

Which is most of the reason why I believe we still need to be extra vigilant this year. All the posturing in the world might not do us any good, if the GOP manages to get a close enough margin to the point where they can pull the same tricks they did in 2000 & 2004(especially the latter year!)

[Politicalboi]

5. So they expect Obama to polish

Turd Rmoney. Rmoney is his own worst enemy. I bet Obama will praise Romneycare. Obama can't help that the truth about Rmoney is negative.

[Smilo]

6. Amazing how the GOPT can

go on the attack again and again and again and nothing is said.

Yes, Democrats are not known to be stand up for themselves, but the GOPT have awoken the sleeping dragon and the game is now on.

[DrKPhd]

9. Certainly the Republicans are worse

It would be impossible for Obama to be more negative than his opposition, who have called him a Muslim socialist and an atheist anarchist in the same sentence. But I don't remember any ads in the 2008 campaign that were negative. Perhaps this is just selective memory, but it seems like a negative campaign is caused by a lack of platform.

What is the big issue Obama is running on? That he's better than Mitt Romney. That's not good. 2008 had health care reform. What do we have now? The Bush Era tax cuts? I think the negative campaign is symptomatic of a worse issue. It's a good thing Mitt's such a poor candidate, or we'd be in trouble.