David Broder on the media and Presidential contenders: solid reporting not star gazing

[wyldwolf]

In a piece mainly about Tom Vilsack, Broder writes:

For the press, the lesson is pretty obvious: instead of prematurely anointing front-runners, we might better serve the public by examining the full range of the presidential field.

For example, Tom Vilsack. Here are a few things to know. He is retiring voluntarily this month after serving for eight years as governor of Iowa. He was born into an orphanage, was adopted by a blue-collar couple in Pittsburgh, saw his mother battle for years against drug and booze addictions, was raised by a single father and eventually saw his mother, strengthened by religion, return to the family and to health.

After college and law school, he moved to his wife's hometown of Mount Pleasant, Iowa, practiced law with his father-in-law, was elected mayor, then state senator and finally governor, each time against favored opponents.

Vilsack is only one of a dozen "one percenters" in current Democratic and Republican polls.

They are one percenters mostly because nobody knows who they are -- or what they've done. That's more the fault of the media than the politicians, and we know what the remedy would be. Some serious, solid reporting, instead of star-gazing.

http://www.sacbee.com/110/story/93062.html

[Clark2008]

1. Well, now... what is Broder going to do about it, then?

I, for one, plan to vote for the most qualified person, regardless of what the media says - or in my candidate's case - or DOESN'T say - about him.

[cadmium]

2. Yes me too---by qualified I dont just mean with an impressive resume, but

also with honesty decency and understanding of the issues. The problem with separating this from the media spin is that the media tells us who has these qualifications and they can make someone into someone they are not. In the final I will vote Democrat anyway, so at least that is an easy decision.