Experiencing the wall-to-wall, hysteric coverage of the BP oilmageddon, one would think the public is following the "mainstream media's" lead and seeing that as the nation's number one issue. Not according to the latest CBS/NY Times poll, which indicates the public is still focused on the economy and jobs (40%) as the number one issue. Oilmageddon is at 13% and -- weak-kneed Democrats, take note -- the deficit is at 5%. So what that should tell you is that, despite the best efforts of Rethug hacks and their willing handmaidens in the media flogging the "Obama's Katrina" and "runaway deficit" narratives, the public is still rightly focused on getting the economy back on track. How could the public not trust the media's judgment on what's important?
Well, maybe they're getting jaded about the media's modus operandi-- with its hyper-short attention span, endless search for a conflict, and need to simplify and visualize the message. Anyone paying attention to the way the "mainstream media" covered the health reform debate sensed how the public wasn't getting factual information from the media, but rather was being hammered by political horse race, "the-system-is-broken" -type stories. This is now confirmed by a Pew Research study just out, which shows that nearly half the media coverage was on politics and strategy, much less on substance. And when substance was the topic, the media's need to have two sides to every argument, even if one side was lying outrageously and was rarely called on it, colored the public's understanding of the law. Take a bow, "mainstream media!"
(Image: Stop bothering him! He's typing as dumb as he can!)
