Late Returns: Ron Paul Gets His Best Coverage From All The Coverage Covering His Lack Of Coverage

So everyone has been talking about whether or not the media have been ignoring Ron Paul in the wake of his second-place finish in the Ames Straw Poll. Well, the Pew Research Center decided to settle the issue, with math. Their findings?

Basically, yeah, the media have been ignoring Ron Paul, and a lot of the bandwidth went to Newt Gingrich, Donald Trump and Sarah Palin.

Pew's Project for Excellence in Journalism (PEJ) also went to additional efforts to assess the amount of coverage Paul received immediately after he narrowly missed a straw poll win. If anything, Paul's coverage was even further diminished:

In a further attempt to gauge the post-straw poll attention to Paul’s campaign, PEJ also used the Snapstream server’s closed captioning capability to assess the candidates’ television coverage in the first few days after that balloting.

The sample included the three network Sunday morning panel shows on August 14, the morning and evening network news programs on August 15 and four hours of prime-time cable and one hour of daytime from each of the three major cable news networks on August 15.

According to that analysis, Paul was mentioned just 29 times. By comparison, Perry was mentioned 371 times, Bachmann was mentioned 274 times, and Romney was mentioned 183 times.

Elsewhere, Kevin Drum says that "Ron Paul's 15 Minutes Are Up." The irony there is that Paul's "15 Minutes" were used up debating whether he deserved "15 Minutes" in the first place. Ron Paul, victim of metaphysics!

[Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism]

_____________________

Jon Huntsman, savvy as ever, gets a profile in Vogue, so I'd expect that massive poll bounce any day now. [Vogue]

Huntsman also wants you to know that he loves Captain Beefheart. [@jonhuntsman]

How have reporters reacted to Rick Perry entering the race? Basically, by saying "SQUEEEEEEE!" Says Mark Halperin, "I'm ready to cancel my vacation to cover Rick Perry." No, no, Mark, we were really looking forward to your vacation. [CJR]

Dave Weigel will fill you in on the latest fad in GOP politics, Lean Six Sigma -- a culty management technique famously sent up by "30 Rock." [Slate]

[Would you like to follow me on Twitter? Because why not? Also, please send tips to [e-mail] -- learn more about our media monitoring project here.]

Comments

[tampajohn]

08:14 AM on 08/21/2011

Ron Paul has the same problem as Ross Perot. As coverage increases perception change. Ross Perot had some great ideas and after he used flash cards it became the norm. Unfortunately or fortunately he was perceived as a little too "nutty" the more he talked his policies and beliefs to a larger crowd. Anyone remember his VP pick? How about the ninga warriors at his daughters wedding? He had my vote til he got a little scary .

[nickleby]

01:27 PM on 08/22/2011

How do Perot's problems relate to Ron Paul?

[tampajohn]

08:04 PM on 08/22/2011

Perot increased his base talking a fresh (non spin) policy and his disconnect from both parties grabbed a lot of support. Unfortunately some of his ideas were considered "out there " at the time. Also the media did not see him as a real contender - nor did they want to support a non 2 party candidate. Lots of similarities for Ron Paul - - legalization of drugs etc that are not mainstream. Other contenders want all candidates to follow the party line script. Ron Paul makes a "out there" statement the media plus other contenders will pounce with no mercy.

[Cornelius F Brantley Jr]

09:51 PM on 08/20/2011

We need an unconventional strategy to change the debate: http://progressivesforronpaul.blogspot.com/

[JimmieOlsen]

05:43 PM on 08/20/2011

Ron Paul is the only politician really giving it to us straight. He predicts the fall of Federal Reserve because a society driven by inflation is doomed to fail - all the money end up in the hands of the rich and no one else - if you do the math. And not the fantasy math where you assume the future remains "rosey" and expansive. Basic economics. Not expansion economics. The only thing expanding now is global competition. He states many other truths, plus he'd immediately stop the war and it's profiteers.

[Kevin Ye]

01:40 PM on 08/20/2011

Just to let you guys know, the poll is a bit misleading. Let's remember that Mr. Paul didn't decide to run until May of this year. People like Jon Huntsman, who only has 17 more stories than him, had been running since February.

The media isn't "corrupt". I agree with Jon Stewart with the diagnosis that it's media sensationalism and laziness that does this. It's much more interesting to look at Donald Trump and Sarah Palin (who was seriously screaming for attention anyway), then taking a look at serious issues such as auditing the Fed. If you REALLY wanted to research that, why don't you look at academic journals instead.

If you also look at name recognition in the Republican party, it's not that bad for Mr. Paul.

Guys, I think Mr. Paul is a great guy and has a couple of interesting ideas, but don't let a poll like this be that misguiding.

[PerotVentuSheehCarte]

09:21 AM on 08/20/2011

10 yrs deceived
both parties corrupt to the core
as is the criminal controlled media
anthrax, shanksville, pentagon, bldg 7, twin towers

[Freedom and Peace]

11:19 PM on 08/19/2011

Give Ron Paul a birthday GIFT on his birthday today...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVhfcLP2UaU

Ron Paul turns 76 and celebrates with a MONEYBOMB...

http://www.ronpaul2012.com/

[rtaylor1974]

04:10 PM on 08/19/2011

Is it me or does anyone notice how any candidate that wants to end the Drug War is completely ostracized by either party??

Obama would never bring up ending the Drug War... Im sure his handlers have made it clear there will be none of that anytime soon.

[Mark128]

04:13 PM on 08/19/2011

RI passed legislation for Compassion Centers which one of my family members cannot open due to the AG Eric Holder!!!! WTF is that!

[BuckJ]

04:16 PM on 08/19/2011

The disproportionate, harsh sentences for cr.a.c.k related convictions have been removed.

That is probably the single biggest step forward in drug policy since Nixon passed the federal drug law.

[rtaylor1974]

04:20 PM on 08/19/2011

not enough they are still un equal its 100 to 1 to powder cocaine sentences. Previoulsy it was 1000 to 1 ...

The glaring inequality is there yet whenever theres mention of ending the drug war . The media says ...Here ..."have some more Rick Perry, and Sister Sarah" ..

[Mark128]

04:06 PM on 08/19/2011

RON PAUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[joekel]

04:24 PM on 08/20/2011

Why?

[Mark128]

10:29 AM on 08/22/2011

From the telegraph

"Abdel-Hakim al-Hasidi, the Libyan rebel leader, has said jihadists who fought against allied troops in Iraq are on the front lines of the battle against Muammar Gaddafi's regime. "

[Mark128]

11:02 AM on 08/22/2011

woops that wasnt the commnet I meant to post sorry

Because Ron Paul = Better than EVERYONE ELSE running as well as the President.

Much better policies etc etc

[Vic22]

03:52 PM on 08/19/2011

Yo dawg, I heard you like coverage, so I'm going to cover the coverage about you getting no coverage

[armchairpickleback]

03:53 PM on 08/19/2011

heh

[armchairpickleback]

03:46 PM on 08/19/2011

buck j

on the reason article. The author cannot say "he wrote" without providing proof. THERE IS NO PROOF HE WROTE THE ARTICLES WHY? BECAUSE HE DIDN"T WRITE THEM. my god.

[BuckJ]

03:58 PM on 08/19/2011

He defended their content in 1996.

Unacceptable.

[armchairpickleback]

04:09 PM on 08/19/2011

He did not defend the content. Reading comprehension is tough for you I see, Look at where the quotes are.

[NoPartyCharlie]

01:20 AM on 08/20/2011

That article has been debunked over and over, he did not write it. It was someone trying to sabotoge him. And the fact that we are even having this conversation goes to show you don't actually know him that well. Its like saying Obama is a proqressive, when its not true. Or Pat Buchanan is for open borders.

[JaxReader]

03:28 PM on 08/19/2011

There are no libertarian governments in existence although the closest thing might be Somalia.

There will never be a Libertarian American Government, it is just an ideological belief in individual liberty. (not in itself a bad thing)

What most libertarians forget though is that it is precisely a strong federal government and shared collective sacrifice that allows individual liberty to be possible.

We have things like minimum wage and civil rights, because when they were absent people were being abused and paid below what was necessary to survive. Social security and Medicare exist because the elderly used to go to places called the 'poor house' to die. Private companies would not give them health insurance and could not afford to, so the government developed Medicare.

The Government's role is to empower people to make their own decisions and to also function for the greater good of all of society. When we take care of the poor, elderly, sick, our nation as a whole is stronger. If pure libertarian ideology would work, we would never have needed these things.

I used to believe in those principles myself, but as I began looking at history more closely and why certain social programs exist; I understood that private corporations will never have the people's best interest at heart. A government (for the people, by the people) is a necessary to facilitate the over all good for the collective majority.

[Conkli38]

03:33 PM on 08/19/2011

Paul's argument is that our government has been taken over by corporations.

[JaxReader]

03:43 PM on 08/19/2011

I don't disagree with him there. Progressive's and TeaPartiers ctually have common ground on that.

However, libertarian beliefs are not simply Ron Paul's, and in the individual liberty crowd it is very limited on those that are ok with the government regulating corporations.

[GuyCybershy]

03:40 PM on 08/19/2011

A more decentralized form of Federalism is entirely possible, even necessary for the type of economy that we will have to build to become competitive again.

[Patriot86]

03:54 PM on 08/20/2011

Your comment disappeared...but telling the truth... GOP elected leaders are deliberately hurting the economy for political gain and are tra_itors...is the truth...and has nothing to do with compassion. You are a Ron Paul guy...which is even more radical then the GOP.

[Rosalee Harris]

03:20 PM on 08/19/2011

Sure he wants to end the war but its the other things that he wants to do that makes him Dangerous and NOT worth the risk. Put it to you this way I would have to be in sane to vote for this guy. Its ironic because its his Anti War stance that makes the media NOT focus on him but that is NOT why a Ron Paul Presidency should be FEARED with every FIBRE in your body. I went to a Libertarian college for two years I KNOW what they believe and it all sounds good if we were living in a perfect world where people dont discriminate but guess what WE DONT and pretending that we do is Dangerous for many.

[GuyCybershy]

03:22 PM on 08/19/2011

Our wars and militarism are destroying our economy and our society. If we don't end them nothing else we do will matter much.

[Conkli38]

03:28 PM on 08/19/2011

You are categorizing anyone who uses the term libertarian into one giant group with similar views. That is a perfect example of collectivism and the same logic a racist uses to hate all in a minority group. Paul would never generalize like that because he believes people should be looked at as individuals and not be put into groups. Apparently you and racists do that, not him.

[EndRacismNow]

04:00 PM on 08/19/2011

There is nothing more racist and divisive than identity group politics. Instead of judging people on the content of their character, 'progressives' judge people by the color of their skin. Many of them do not hide their disdain for white people but for some reason that isn't considered racist in their fantasy world of double standards.

[GraniteSkyline]

02:30 PM on 08/19/2011

Ron Paul should send Jon Stewart a thank you card and a basket of muffins for pointing out the media's oversight.

[armchairpickleback]

02:37 PM on 08/19/2011

He will be on Stewarts show sept 26.

[EndRacismNow]

02:49 PM on 08/19/2011

Sweet. I gotta give a lot of credit to Stewart for that Ron Paul piece.

[Aaron Calhoun]

02:24 PM on 08/19/2011

Y'know, as a progressive, I have been on the fence about Ron Paul as far as just how different he is from other Teapublicans. I had thought for some time that he was basically an "honest guy" amidst a bevy of despicable blowhards, just based on limited knowledge of his views on personal liberties and other libertarian ideals, as well as listening to a few speeches.

Lately, though, I've been finding out more about his views and think that he is simply too draconian in some of his views concerning affirmative action / or freedom to discriminate, not to mention his strong anti-choice and anti-immigration stances.

I recently read up on some of Paul's less flattering history which apparently contain some VERY troubling statements / views about people of color, and of racial tension in the U.S. Also, he was recently interviewed and said that he would have opposed the Civil Rights Act because business owners should be free to openly discriminate against whoever they want for whatever reason they want, including race.

For progressives interested in finding out more about these troublesome pieces to the Ron Paul puzzle, here's a couple of links about this issue:

The New Republic - http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-chait/88421/ron-pauls-racism

CNN - http://articles.cnn.com/2008-01-10/politics/paul.newsletters_1_newsletters-blacks-whites?_s=PM:POLITICS

Progressive blog - http://pennsylvaniaprogressive.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/06/ron_paul_white_.html

[armchairpickleback]

02:34 PM on 08/19/2011

This again. He did NOT make those statements and DOES NOT have those views. Ron Paul is pro individual rights, racism is a collective. Would a racist free 10k plus black males and females from federal prisons that were convicted of non violent drug charges? nope. Ron Paul will.

[Aaron Calhoun]

03:09 PM on 08/19/2011

"He did NOT make those statements and DOES NOT have those views."

Aside from a fairly implausible denial by Paul himself, there is ZERO evidence he wasn't responsible for those statements.

He was the publisher of the newsletter in which those statements were printed, as well as apparently being the ONLY name associated with those statements.

There was at least one instance in which it seems obvious that the words are supposed to be those of Ron Paul himself....from the CNN article:

In some excerpts, the reader may be led to believe the words are indeed from Paul, a resident of Lake Jackson, Texas. In the "Ron Paul Political Report" from October 1992, the writer describes carjacking as the "hip-hop thing to do among the urban youth who play unsuspecting whites like pianos."

The author then offers advice from others on how to avoid being carjacked, including "an ex-cop I know," and says, "I frankly don't know what to make of such advice, but even in my little town of Lake Jackson, Texas, I've urged everyone in my family to know how to use a gun in self defense. For the animals are coming."

[BuckJ]

03:11 PM on 08/19/2011

It's not going away as long as Paul is both running for office and refused to address it satisfactorily. I know he has IN HIS OPINION, but he really hasn't. The chain of events is:

1996: Didn't deny authorship. "Explained" how statements didn't really mean what it looks like they mean. (Frankly, it reminds me of watching Farrakhan walk back provocative statements.)

2000: Denies authorship. Says he didn't deny authorship in 1996 because it would have "confused" voters. States he was practicing medicine and not paying attention to newsletters and was unaware of the questionable content...which he says was unacceptable.

2007: It comes up again and copies of newletters surface covering a period of about a decade, making it increasingly difficult to buy he had no idea for that many years what was going out under his name. Paul's defense: states this is old news and the he cannot be rac.i.st because he only sees people as individuals...and then moments later in the same interview says the attack is because he is gaining support with "the blacks".

[EndRacismNow]

02:52 PM on 08/19/2011

Please stop recycling the newsletter story that wasn't written by him and was over 20 years ago. This story was first brought up by the neo-cons who felt threatened by his reasonable anti-interventionist foreign policy. You don't mess with the neo-con's war machine.

[BuckJ]

03:13 PM on 08/19/2011

Oh, it was over 20 years ago. I guess it doesn't matter then.

Like that body I dumped.

[Aaron Calhoun]

03:17 PM on 08/19/2011

I still have yet to hear or see ANY credible information concerning the claim that he didn't write it, aside from Paul's own disavowal, which simply ISN'T CREDIBLE.

I'm not "recycling" anything....because Paul is a presidential candidate, and I am a registered voter who wishes to be informed about various aspects of a candidate's political and personal background, I did some looking and found this information on CURRENT news and blog sites....so don't act as though I'M recycling anything. Contact every single news source of this information and debate it with them.

Until Paul provides reasonable "proof" that he didn't write the newsletter nor approve ANY of the content as the publisher, this is absolutely a relevant story, regardless of how long ago it was or the presence of any implausible denials on his part.

[john649]

02:02 PM on 08/19/2011

Dr.Ron Paul has said he is a great admirer of Ayn Rand.

Ayn Rand, like Karl Marx, was a strong disbeliever in the values of organized religion, and Jesus Christ in particular. Ayn Rand, a fierce and aggressive critic of President Kennedy, was a strong disbeliever in the concept of patriotism that involves sacrifice for others.

Ayn Rand believed in a Darwinian view of the world, in a supremely selfish notion of citizenship in which we are not our brother's keeper, in which her greatest good involves the most selfish ends.

It would be interesting to know what she would think about Wall Street bonuses to bailed-out bankers. I suspect she would not have liked them, but I also know that many of her devotees today have no objection to them. Why have the Tea Party leaders been so (hypocritically) silent about the Wall Street bonuses for bailed-out firms?

The core of Ayn Rand's view, incorporated into many of the policies of Dr. Paul and certain (but not all) Tea Party believers, is that the poor are poor because they are inferior, that workers are jobless because they are inferior (how many times have Ayn Rand believers opposed jobless benefits, falsely believing the jobless would rather have the benefits than the jobs?).

Is this the scariest person yet to surface and attempt to run the USA?

btw -Tea Partiers are LESS popular than muslims and atheists.

[Mgrave66]

02:17 PM on 08/19/2011

Nice collectivism there. I especially like the

"Tea Party believers, is that the poor are poor because they are inferior, that worke­rs are jobless because they are inferior (­how many times have Ayn Rand believers ­opposed jobless benefits, falsely believing ­the jobless would rather have the benefits t­han the jobs?).

I'm a Tea Partier, and I dont believe any of that. Some people are poor because of bad choices and circumstances. Some, because they are lazy. Do I believe myself better than these people? No.

And trying to better our country shouldnt be a popularity contest, this isnt high school.

[JaxReader]

03:03 PM on 08/19/2011

"And trying to better our country shouldnt be a popularity contest, this isnt high school."

True, this is not high school. This is a democratic republic with the notion that the 'majority will' (that is popular belief) should guide our elected representatives to pass legislation that reflects the will of the majority. Therefore a minority with a disproval rating near 80% from the American people, should not hold our nation hostage to their views at the detriment of disassembling the government.

Perhaps not your view either, but certainly the majority view of the TeaParty as demonstrated by its supporters and stated by its leaders during the recent debt ceiling crises. You know, there was another part to the snake symbol that is proudly displayed by TeaParty members ("Don't tread on me").

It was the same snake broken into separated states and it said, "Join or D i e". The importance of that being, without the people and states being united, America would fail. I wish more people remembered that.

[gneep]

02:18 PM on 08/19/2011

but I believe he is as honest and truthfull as they let him be!