http://journalism.org Journalism.org's News Index Feed en-US http://journalism.org/node/11038 After weeks of shifting campaign narratives, the results May 6 in North Carolina and Indiana results convinced many journalists and pundits that the long and grueling Democratic primary fight was finally resolved. From Tim Russert to Time magazine, the news industry last week declared Barack Obama the winner. http://journalism.org/node/10928 Jeremiah Wright’s media tour drove the campaign narrative last week, generating intense speculation about his motives and the impact on Barack Obama’s candidacy. In an election noted for coverage of gaffes and controversy, no story line has had as much staying power as the minister and the candidate. http://journalism.org/node/10824 Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton generated a huge portion of the headlines last week as Pennsylvanians finally went to the polls. The issue of race re-emerged to play a substantial role in the media’s Democratic campaign narrative. And Republican John McCain struggled to be heard through the din. http://journalism.org/node/10720 The two Democratic contenders went at it last week, battling over Barack Obama’s “bitter” remarks at a California fundraiser and over the ABC debate that some said had too much “gotcha.” Trailing in the race for attention, John McCain saw the media examine everything from his economic policy to his temper last week. http://journalism.org/node/10619 Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama attracted more attention from the press than John McCain last week. But the two Democrats were often engaged in serious damage control while the GOP’s candidate was basking in some pretty positive coverage. http://journalism.org/node/10514 The key media narrative last week involved growing pressure on Hillary Clinton to withdraw from the primary fight. Meanwhile, Barack Obama tried his hand at hands-on campaigning while John McCain hoped to grab the media’s attention with a tour of some old stomping grounds. http://journalism.org/node/10580 Two liberal radio hosts, Randi Rhodes and Ed Schultz, generated headlines and a backlash last week for their rhetoric in attacking Hillary Clinton and John McCain. And some conservative talkers see pro-Barack Obama media bias behind the calls on Clinton to withdraw. http://journalism.org/node/10418 Democrats are finding out that being in the news isn’t necessarily good news. A week after Barack Obama was besieged by the Rev. Wright furor, Hillary Clinton’s memory and veracity came under fire. Does all this make John McCain the big winner? http://journalism.org/node/10381 In a week in which the campaign overwhelmingly dominated the talk airwaves, the hottest issue was Obama’s speech aimed at dampening the Rev. Jeremiah Wright controversy. In the talk show universe, the response was impassioned, but the verdict was far from unanimous. http://journalism.org/node/10319 John McCain and Hillary Clinton were reduced to relative obscurity last week. The media’s presidential campaign narrative instead focused on one overarching issue: could Barack Obama handle the controversy over his pastor’s racially inflammatory remarks? http://journalism.org/node/10210 When it came to coverage, John McCain was a forgotten man compared with Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. But perhaps no news was good news for the GOP in a week during which the press highlighted some of the uglier divisions among Democrats. http://journalism.org/node/10106 With wins in Ohio and Texas, Hillary Clinton was the top campaign newsmaker last week. The media’s first verdict was that her aggressive attacks succeeded in stopping Barack Obama’s momentum. Their next question was whether Obama was capable of responding in kind. http://journalism.org/node/10004 Barack Obama generated more campaign coverage than Hillary Clinton in a week in which Democrats completely dominated the media narrative. But Clinton’s complaints about a journalistic tilt toward her opponent seemed to strike a responsive chord. http://journalism.org/node/9907 Obama’s big win in Wisconsin shaped the Democrats’ media narrative last week and had some pundits wondering whether Clinton was contemplating her own defeat. And why a New York Times expose about the presumptive GOP nominee may prove to be manna for McCain. http://journalism.org/node/9828 Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton dominated coverage of the 2008 presidential campaign last week, but in very different ways. While Obama got a big bounce from primary wins, the Clinton campaign was besieged by bad news. Meanwhile, John McCain inched closer to inevitability. http://journalism.org/node/9711 The three candidates with the best shot at next occupying the White House all got extensive coverage in the biggest week yet for campaign news. But none of them generated the headlines he or she really wanted. And, once again, Huckabee proved that the reports of his political demise were premature. http://journalism.org/node/9610 By generating more coverage than any other candidate last week, and easily outdistancing his GOP rivals, Senator John McCain rode a media narrative of near inevitability last week. Plus, Senator Ted Kennedy becomes a major newsmaker. http://journalism.org/node/9512 With the South Carolina primary as backdrop, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton finished in a near tie in the media derby. But in a nasty week former President Bill Clinton was a bigger newsmaker than any Republican candidate. http://journalism.org/node/9436 The two leading Democrats once again attracted more coverage than any of their GOP rivals in the race for media exposure last week. But the GOP overall tipped the scales in what became a big boost for Mitt Romney, both in Michigan and in the media. http://journalism.org/node/9266 John McCain and Hillary Clinton both walked away with crucial New Hampshire victories but the Arizona Republican trailed the New York Democrat badly in the battle for media attention. And why the media treated Mike Huckabee’s third-place finish much differently than John Edwards’. http://journalism.org/node/9373 The two biggest names in talk radio are telling their listeners how to separate the real conservatives from phonies. And some hosts seemed to “cover” the campaign by becoming part of the story. http://journalism.org/node/8975 The unlikely surge of former Arkansas Governor helped generate the biggest week of coverage for the presidential campaign so far in 2007. But as Huckabee is learning, some media attention is more welcome than others. Plus, the Mitchell report turns steroid abuse in baseball into a front-page story—some might say at long last. http://journalism.org/node/9048 All year long, Hillary Clinton has dominated the campaign conversation on the talk airwaves. And last week, signs that the Democratic battle for president might be tightening had many hosts talking up the idea of a Clinton swoon. Plus, Michael Savage on steroids. (Talking about them, not taking them.) http://journalism.org/node/8872 For most of the year, the American media have been far more preoccupied with the war in Iraq than with growing tensions between the U.S. and Iran. But last week, a new intelligence report sparked a heated debate over policy toward the leadership in Tehran. http://journalism.org/node/8935 Thanks to Mitt Romney’s big speech on his Mormon faith, the presidential race was the biggest story of the week in the talk universe last week. And while the new intelligence report on Iran sparked a lively debate, the CIA’s destruction of two terror interrogation tapes didn’t generate much interest. http://journalism.org/node/8753 The increasingly heated exchanges between Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney helped make the race for the White House the top story last week in PEJ’s Index of the news. On the Democratic side, a former President generated a good chunk of the coverage, and it wasn’t all good. That, plus a football murder case. http://journalism.org/node/8577 Planted questions, the B-word, and an embarrassing indictment were all fodder for journalists covering the revved up race for the White House last week. In Pakistan, a national crisis turns personal in the media. And cable news’ favorite celebrity defendant. http://journalism.org/node/8534 Dennis Kucinich’s call to impeach Vice President Cheney made nary a blip with the general media last week but it was a big story on in the talk media, especially on the left side of the talk radio dial. Meanwhile the many angles of the 2008 campaign gave everyone grist to talk about. http://journalism.org/node/8473 With the exception of the war in Iraq, international affairs tend not to generate major media interest. But General Pervez Musharraf’s Nov. 3 declaration of emergency rule in Pakistan proved to be a dramatic exception to that rule—and there may be several disquieting reasons why. http://journalism.org/node/8356 The presidential race was easily the biggest story in the media last week. But while much of the coverage focused on the attacks on Hillary Clinton at the Democrats’ Drexel University debate, the press also reassessed several other candidates. http://journalism.org/node/8433 Thanks in part to the Democrats’ spirited debate in Philadelphia, last week was the biggest week of the year for the presidential campaign in the universe of radio and cable talk shows. The main course was the Democratic front runner who got carved up by hosts and pundits of various political stripes. http://journalism.org/node/8247 The wildfires that raged in Southern California last week featured numerous tales of bravery, tragedy, and plenty of missing pets. But one reason the disaster became such a major story was that journalists couldn’t resist raising the comparison—fair or not—with the 2005 fiasco on the Gulf Coast. http://journalism.org/node/8312 The disaster in Southern California dominated the conversation in the talk show universe last week. Not every host played the story the same way. But for some the search was on for bad guys—with FEMA and environmentalists getting caught in the crosshairs. http://journalism.org/node/8166 Three of the top-10 topics on the cable and radio talk shows last week directly involved the hosts themselves. They included an argument over the SCHIP health care program, the debate over U.S. policy in Iraq, and the strange case of Randi Rhodes. http://journalism.org/node/8124 What did last week’s flare up of violence in Pakistan, the scary news about a deadly “superbug,” and the ideological skirmishes among presidential hopefuls have in common? They were all top stories, but each seemed more suited for a different media sector. http://journalism.org/node/8080 The debut of Fred Thompson as a GOP debater helped make last week the second-biggest week of the year in the talk show universe for the 2008 presidential campaign. But so did a talk brouhaha over a more tangential topic involving the debate. Also, conservative Michael Savage lets a conservative pundit have it. http://journalism.org/node/8013 While crime coverage may seem like a staple of our news diet, last week was actually unusual in that three frightening stories of random violence generated coverage—with two making the top-10 story list. When it comes to crime however, the media attention span is usually short-lived. http://journalism.org/node/7967 While the rest of the media were focused on private security contractors in Iraq last week, the cable and radio talk hosts spent their time continuing to argue over a controversial phrase by Rush Limbaugh. Plus, another remnant of the Anna Nicole Smith saga makes the top-10 list. http://journalism.org/node/7923 For years, journalists struggled to report on the activities the private security firms in Iraq, companies who functioned in some ways as private armies. But last week, when the story of one such company moved from the streets of Baghdad to the hearing rooms on Capitol Hill, the media shed more light on the mystery. http://journalism.org/node/7875 Yes, newsmakers like Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton were major topics in talk media last week. But it was two of the hosts themselves, Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly, who inspired some of the most passion. http://journalism.org/node/7810 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s speaking trip to New York proved irresistible for the news media last week. But once you got past the hype, the politics, and the First Amendment debate, how much did we learn about Iran? http://journalism.org/node/7772 The Simpson arrest and Hillary Clinton’s health care proposal proved irresistible fodder for the talk show universe last week. Plus, why some newsmakers—like Dan Rather and Alan Greenspan—got more attention on talk shows than in the general news coverage. http://journalism.org/node/7705 The arrest of O.J. Simpson not only conjured up memories of the famous murder trial of a dozen years ago, it also recalled the media feeding frenzy that surrounded that trial. And as was the case back in 1995, the story last week was a made-for-TV drama. http://journalism.org/node/7654 General David Petraeus’ appearance on Capitol Hill last week helped turn the Iraq debate into one of the biggest talk topics of the year. The general may not have changed many minds in Congress, but he provided talk hosts on both sides of the political spectrum with plenty of ammunition. http://journalism.org/node/7588 The general’s appearance before Congress last week was widely expected to be a pivot point in the political brawl over Iraq war policy. The media swarmed, but the story they told may help explain why David Petraeus’s testimony seemed, for now, to cement the status quo. http://journalism.org/node/7469 The political skirmishing in advance of General Petraeus’ progress report made the Iraq debate the top story last week. And Fred Thompson’s entry helped generate coverage of the 2008 Presidential race. But a new video, a major arrest in Germany, and two mysterious men in Seattle proved why terrorism is still a major newsmaker. http://journalism.org/node/7522 One is a longtime senator who may be driven from office by scandal. Another is a former senator who announced his intent to seek the highest office in the land. Both were target-rich environments for the talk shows last week and both took their share of lumps. This, plus Michael Savage’s memorable Pavarotti tribute. http://journalism.org/node/7345 It’s been a while since the debate over Iraq policy was the nation’s top talk show topic. But the Iraq doubters drove the suddenly re-ignited conversation on the airwaves last week. Meanwhile, the strange saga of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick and his dog fighting operation proved a difficult topic to tackle. http://journalism.org/node/7281 Two different destructive storms struck the continent and even in the dog days of summer, the presidential race continued to attract significant media interest. But several factors—an intelligence report, a senatorial statement, and a presidential analogy—all combined to re-ignite the debate over U.S. policy in Iraq. http://journalism.org/node/7219 The departure of the Bush Administration’s most-polarizing adviser gave talk shows plenty to talk about last week, as hosts from the left and right assessed the White House tenure of Karl Rove. But even as the aide prepared to shuffle off to Texas, the campaign was on most hosts’ minds.