To cover or not to cover and how to cover - media influencing elections

This years presidential election cycle has given us a rare glimpse into the role media bias plays during elections free of our own personal political biases.

A view into the fall of Joe Biden and rise of Kamala Harris can keep the discussion squarely on the left of the political divide freeing us to discuss the role of the media in elections with out having to resort to personal arguments regarding our presidential candidate of choise. In other words in this thread we need not discuss Biden vs Trump, Harris vs Trump or Trump at all.

The vice president's favorability rating has jumped to 43%, with an unfavorability rating of 42%, according to the ABC News/Ipsos poll conducted using Ipsos' KnowledgePanel. In an ABC News/Ipsos poll released a week ago, Harris’ favorability rating was 35%, while 46% viewed her unfavorability.

Forty-four percent of independents have a favorable view of Harris, up from only 28% a week ago.

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Irregardless of whether or not Harris deserves any particular job approval rating ... what did she do in the last week and a half that would account for an almost 10% change in her approval rating? What new accomplishments did she work out as VP last week into this week? What new policies did she put forth? What new negotiations did she engage in? And extra?

As far as I know the answer is nothing. The Kamala Harris of today is the same Kamala Harris of last month and basically the same Kamala Harris last year.

To be clear I am not making an argument that Kamala Harris is not a accomplishment politician in general; the argument is that nothing has changed in her accomplishments in the last week to account for an increase in her approval ratings.

Joe Biden's story in the opposite direction is also interesting. His approval ratings have fallen in the last month following a shacky debate; but his accomplishments, whether you personally acknowledge them or not, didn't evaporate from existence following the debate. For example; if you liked his work on the "green new deal" before the debate than you should still like his work after the debate.

So what really changed for Joe and Kamala in the last few weeks to account for this swing in approval? The only thig I can think of is media coverage.

Before the debate the news media had no incentive to cover Kamala Harris and her approval ratings reflect a person being ignored by the news media. Over the two weeks following the debate the news media was wall to wall covering the frailty of Joe Biden so his approval ratings sank. And now that Kamala Harris is being covered as the saviour of the Democrat party her approval ratings are climbing. No changes in real world accomplishments for either of them in the last month; but they saw approval ratings changes directly attributable to how the media is covering them.

Six ways the media influence elections

1. To cover or not to cover

The first way journalists get involved in elections is by choosing which candidates to cover and how much. Those choices alone can have a huge effect on voter perceptions.

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Is this a flaw in our election process? A free press is needed in order to keep the people informed about their country and the people who lead it. But have the free press become to powerful in recent decades? Have they become King Makers?

Have they always been King Makers?

I would add:

Has the news media been weaponized?

a reply to: Dandandat3

Remember the movie ''UP""? There was this running bit where a cartoon dog would be focused on one thing or another when suddenly it's entire attention and focus would jarringly be flipped by it's sighting of a SQUIRREL !!!!!

Nuff said?

originally posted by: nugget1
I would add:

Has the news media been weaponized?

They've lied so much over the past 7 years about so many things, there's a reason why the U.S. News Media is labeled as the biggest domestic enemy and terrorist organization, that ever existed on U.S. soil.

a reply to: BingoMcGoof

Really ? Oh , and did you know Buzz Lightyear used to Work for Google ? It's What they Don't Tell you that's the REAL NEWS...

originally posted by: BingoMcGoof
a reply to: Dandandat3

Remember the movie ''UP""?

Nuff said?

Yes. It was among the first "adult comedy" movies I ever saw: www.myreviewer.com...

😉

a reply to: nugget1

Based on the premise of my OP (one Democrat over another) I don't know if "weaponisation" really is supported by the evidence. Thats not to say it can't be weaponised given its current state.

I think what is being demonstrated in this case is simply the power the media has amassed for itself; what they ultimately do with it (weaponisation) would need further proof.

the 'media' is 99% left wing propaganda. If trump lives and makes it back into the WH despite massive dem voter fraud, I'd lOVE IT if he re-instated smith mundt

You can’t hate the media enough.
This ought to grind your gears….

Kamala’s staffers are following around reporters who are interviewing people at the campaign events, deliberately trying to intimidate and silence them…

In late June Kamala had a rally in Las Vegas in which journalists reported that several campaign staffers followed them around to listen to what those being interviewed were telling them.
If the attendee said anything negative about Joe Biden, the staffer would try to cut the interview short.
The one from the LVR-J indicated that in one instance, a person she was interviewing seemed intimidated by the Biden-Harris campaign staffer, which could have had the net effect of making the person afraid to reveal their true feelings.

They wondered if this was just a one off, until yesterday.

According to Associated Press reporter Steve Peoples, a Monday Kamala for President campaign rally in Pennsylvania featuring Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and PA Gov. Josh Shapiro saw staffers actually trying to block reporters from interviewing rallygoers beyond what he called the "press pen."

Here what the reporter said…
“Harris campaign is blocking reporters from talking to voters outside the press pen here at Whitmer/Shapiro event in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
Note that the Harris campaign staff here at PA event allowed me to leave the press pen to talk to voters after someone from Delaware headquarters intervened.
Appreciate all the feedback. Glad everyone agrees that press access and transparency is an important part of our democracy.” redstate.com... 177536#google_vignette

Intimidating and censoring reporters.
The media will keep covering for her though, that’s the only thing they do these days.

More fun and games from the media today….

NEW: Far-left MSNBC contributor Molly Jong-Fast has apparently locked her X account after getting obliterated for saying JD Vance only wants white children in America.

For those who don't know, Vance's own children are biracial. 🤡

Jong-Fast X account, @MollyJongFast, is now protected after she got shredded online.

Jong-Fast appeared to know nothing about Vance despite being portrayed as an expert during the show on MSNBC.

How humiliating.
x.com...