Hillary and buyer's "pre"-morse
October 30th 2007 23:49
I frequently watch political talkshows and I've noticed something lately. Some political commentators who were previously hesitant to cast Hillary Clinton in a negative light now seem to be eager to criticize her. I especially noticed this with Chris Matthews on MSNBC. Why is this happening now? Well, I believe that many commentators, pundits, and even voters are experiencing buyer's "pre"-morse when it comes to Hillary. Buyer's RE-morse is sometimes experienced AFTER a purchase. However, even before Hillary has received the nomination, folks are starting to regret what seems like an inevitable Clinton victory. And, without a doubt, there are valid reasons for their concern.
First, the Democratic race has seemingly turned into a rout. Most pundits have already anointed Hillary as the near-certain winner of the Democratic nomination. Obama, Edwards, and the other candidates just can't seem to penetrate the Clinton armor. I do think that the media, while they have their favorites, don't want to see a rout. They want the race to be interesting because it makes their jobs more interesting. Also, a "coronation" is not as good for the country as is a free and competititive exchange of ideas. For this reason, I think that the media will continue to do their best to bring Hillary back to the rest of the pack.
A second reason for the shift of tone by the political commentators is the fact that Hillary is vulnerable in a general election. I fully believe that many folks in the media want a Democratic victory. Yes, there is no shortage of studies illustrating that the TV and print media is overwhelmingly liberal. On top of that, however, I think that many in the media just want a change -- and a change in the White House means that Democrats would take over. However, in an election where the Democrats should easily win the presidency, Hillary could be the best hope for a destitute Republican Party. According to a recent Zogby poll, 50% of likely voters say that they would NEVER vote for Hillary. When you're starting with such high negatives, you have an exceedingly difficult (if not impossible) task ahead of you. For this reason, I think that the talking heads are starting to fear that they have taken a fork in the road that will lead to another Republican presidency. That may or may not be the case, but it's easy to see how one could reach that conclusion.
So is there a case of buyer's "pre"-morse going around with respect to Hillary? I think there is. If I'm right, we will see more and more Democratic-friendly journalists and pundits try to make a race out of it. I don't think they'll go into full attack mode (knowing that Hillary's candidacy may actually be inevitable already), but they will use the tools at their disposal to even things out. Will they succeed? I doubt it. I think Hillary is unstoppable in the primary. But that doesn't mean that they won't try. Either way, it'll be interesting to see how the election coverage evolves in the next couple of months.
First, the Democratic race has seemingly turned into a rout. Most pundits have already anointed Hillary as the near-certain winner of the Democratic nomination. Obama, Edwards, and the other candidates just can't seem to penetrate the Clinton armor. I do think that the media, while they have their favorites, don't want to see a rout. They want the race to be interesting because it makes their jobs more interesting. Also, a "coronation" is not as good for the country as is a free and competititive exchange of ideas. For this reason, I think that the media will continue to do their best to bring Hillary back to the rest of the pack.
A second reason for the shift of tone by the political commentators is the fact that Hillary is vulnerable in a general election. I fully believe that many folks in the media want a Democratic victory. Yes, there is no shortage of studies illustrating that the TV and print media is overwhelmingly liberal. On top of that, however, I think that many in the media just want a change -- and a change in the White House means that Democrats would take over. However, in an election where the Democrats should easily win the presidency, Hillary could be the best hope for a destitute Republican Party. According to a recent Zogby poll, 50% of likely voters say that they would NEVER vote for Hillary. When you're starting with such high negatives, you have an exceedingly difficult (if not impossible) task ahead of you. For this reason, I think that the talking heads are starting to fear that they have taken a fork in the road that will lead to another Republican presidency. That may or may not be the case, but it's easy to see how one could reach that conclusion.
So is there a case of buyer's "pre"-morse going around with respect to Hillary? I think there is. If I'm right, we will see more and more Democratic-friendly journalists and pundits try to make a race out of it. I don't think they'll go into full attack mode (knowing that Hillary's candidacy may actually be inevitable already), but they will use the tools at their disposal to even things out. Will they succeed? I doubt it. I think Hillary is unstoppable in the primary. But that doesn't mean that they won't try. Either way, it'll be interesting to see how the election coverage evolves in the next couple of months.
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