The Cackle Joins The Haircut and The Sigh

You simply cannot find recent examples where the press pounced on physical ticks or trivial personal foibles of Republican candidates and announced them to be wildly important and deeply revealing. That's just not a distraction Republican candidates have to deal with. The media phenomenon only applies to Democrats and the phenomenon only exists because journalists manufacture it.

There's zero proof that voters actually care about Sighs or Haircuts or Cackles, stories that consume so much of the press corps' time, energy, and interest. That was confirmed by the polling data released after the recent cascade of negative Clinton coverage. One prominent poll showed she had opened up a gaping 33-point lead over her closest rival. The press manufactured an accusatory storyline about Clinton's calculated laughs, and voters couldn't have cared less.

Read the full Media Matters column here.

Comments

[Wombat]

12:43 AM on 10/12/2007

You don't really get it Eric. Just look at the front pages of the NY Times and LA Times for the past few days. They are pretty much all "SAFE STORIES." The story about designer rehab facilities in Malibu will hardly flood the newsroom with complaints­. But dare to critcise St George and his glorious war and newsrooms will be awash with angry e-mails, angry phone calls and angry FAX's from tons of angry wingnuts. Vaccous stories about Brittany or Lindsay don't envoke that kind of response. Better to be "safe" and keep the customer satisfied.

[tonybar]

11:18 PM on 10/11/2007

Aren't we over the laugh issue this week? We all do it. Sometimes we even fake it. Laughing can be fun. I've known a few republican­s that do it also. I personally­, am acussed of laughing too loud at the movies, that does't stop me.

[nunzia]

03:19 PM on 10/11/2007

Another reason they talk about it is that it's so damned easy. No thought, no research, no considerat­ion or reason required. They can fill air time with 3/4 of their brain cells tied behind their backs. Don't watch that garbage.

[RickO]

08:47 AM on 10/11/2007

I suppose it goes to show that if you have to focus on one's laughter, grooming or breathing habits, it's because you can't find anything else to criticize.

[JoeSun]

08:40 AM on 10/11/2007

Hillary's laugh is fake.

[LeftRight]

07:29 AM on 10/11/2007

They talk about it (again, and again, and again) because they are trying to dispell the "liberal" media label, even though it's a complete myth, since they haven't been hard on repugs since before the 1994 election brought them to power in clowngress­...

[SensibleAmerican]

02:26 PM on 10/11/2007

So true! I have witnessed so called "political pundits" spending more time discussing 'body language' of politician­s, their mannerisms and gestures, who would people prefer to "have a beer with" and similar inane stuff ad nauseum!

The problem is that the real "political pundits" have been replaced by political hacks and true blue journalist­s have been replaced by propagandi­sts! They really do not have the acumen to address real issues ...