Media Must Not Cover Palin Until She Holds a Press Conference

I know I'm supposed to talk about the debate today, but I could not help but notice that the McCain campaign is still embarrassed by Sarah Palin. That's why she's campaigning in Texas, not a contested state, and California, a huge loser for the Republicans. Do you see Sarah Palin in a battleground area, say, Ohio or Pennsylvania?

Of course not, because the McCain campaign still lives in fear of Palin saying the wrong thing in a place where it may matter. So Palin continues to regurgitate what's handed to her by the campaign, and the fanatics she attracts eat it up; they eat it up and they are still hungry for more. For the zealots, it's not enough to say Obama pals around with a terrorist. They shout that Obama is a terrorist! There's no place to go that's too far when you're talking to the fringes of society. Obama's a lesbian! is right around the corner.

But Palin gets media coverage, and this baffles me. Why cover Palin if the media cannot speak to her? Why cover her if, as is now the case, the media are not allowed to talk to her supporters?

This is ridiculous. It's out of hand. And the media that continue to cover Palin's repetition of talking points are the enablers of a McCain-Palin regime that embraces the tactics used in China.

No talking to the VP candidate. No asking her views. We'll let you in the press know what you can say about Palin.

Jeez, I did a three minute segment on Fox News last week that was more of a back and forth than Palin has done since she became the nominee!

Andrew Sullivan was the first to talk about Palin's failure to hold a press conference, but I thought the McCain campaign would allow Palin to do a press conference at some point. They have not.

The press needs to stand up, not just for itself, not just for the right of a free press, but for the people. This isn't about the McCain campaigns' need to hide Palin. This is about the possibility of a future president who refuses to hold a press conference.

This is about a possible future President who hides in plain sight.

This is about democracy and our right to know and to hear from a candidate, unfiltered.

The press needs to grow up, and say, "We're not going to take it anymore." You know what, some conservatives may get pissed. Too bad. Stand up for what's right.

Follow the lead of Campbell Brown on CNN - there's a person who, regardless of her views (she's married to Dan Senor, who was Coalition spokesperson in Iraq), is outraged by the McCain camp's treatment of Palin. Why is she the only non-partisan media person speaking out?

No more Palin until Palin stands in front of a podium and gives a press conference.

Comments

[trying-to-be-objective]

I agree 100%. The Press (collectively) does not need to Announce that they are not covering Palin. They just need to collectively agree not to give video ops until real press access is granted.

It would be worse if they DID announce it. They should just agree not to cover her until she meets the basic criteria of equal access comparable to other Presidential and VP candidates.

Because she is just manipulating the press with an unapologetic "I won't do anything but my sound bites" hype, and the press should respond with a "We won't publish free advertising sound bites" policy.

[MsIKnowBetter]

Still waiting for other shoe to drop, she has more secrets to hide for my liking.

[oldugly]

On the Jed Report they keep a ticker that should be adopted by every web site , by every news site. It counts the days for McCain and Palin since their last press conferences. (for McCain its at 53 days and Palin is at 34 days)

Press kept under a watchful eye
CLEARWATER -- Constantly under the watchful eyes of security, the media wasn't permitted to wander around inside Coachman Park to talk to Sarah Palin supporters. When reporters tried to leave the designated press area and head toward the bleachers where the crowd was seated, an escort would dart out of nowhere and confront him or her and say, "Can I help you?'' and turn the person around.
When one reporter asked an escort, who would not give her name, why the press wasn't allowed to mingle, she said that in the past, negative things had been written. The campaign wanted to avoid that possibility Monday.
-- Times staff writer Eileen Schulte



America are you going to let them do this? Is this Freedom? Is this what our politics are about????

And to you the press…. Is there no one with courage?
Will you allow this??
Right now on all the channels Palin is shucking and jiving smiling to the mob who cheers every nonsense and cheers every name called with NO ONE asking if it is true or right?

Shame on the press, Shame Shame Shame

[maribelle1963]

Completely agreed. They are enabling this travesty completely.

The press needs to band together on this.

No more pictures without words. This is movie is a talkie.

[ohboynotagain]

I mean the media spend all day repeating the utter BS coming from her mouth. You think she or McCain cares? Its all free Advertising

[Rossetti4President2016]

I completely agree, cut off the sideshow joke of a campaign, it is downright un-American to avoid the press while encouraging bigotry, hatred and blatant racism. Palin is in Pensacola today, a 30 minute drive for me, but I didn't want to be surrounded by a room full of "the swept-up" zealots who are there to "worship" her.

[StickyStickyMcCain]

Bad strategy. The McCain campaign is showing their sexism and punishing her enough,why should the Press give her any more sympathy by showing vindictiveness. Two, you want to keep her out there, so she does not splash on to the scene again.

[Thorn]

"Media must not cover"? How -- what's the word? -- constitutional.

[Ourrias]

You got no constitutional right for the press to cover Sarah Palin.

[Thorn]

You "got" no right for them not to. What crazy argument. I can't believe I wasted 20 seconds typing this.

[MsDebate]

I'm with you on that, sounds like a winner..

[amati1684]

I agree. There must be a total media blackout of the Palin campaign; the sooner, the better. I have a feeling she would injure herself getting to the phone to schedule that press conference.

[vivian eponymous]

I'm not sure which is better, covering Palin or not covering Palin. The more we see of her, the worse McCain does in the polls, so I think we Democrats should accept her as the Gift from God that she is.

I'd say the fact that she hasn't done a press conference should be turned into a visible issue, rather than that Sarah Palin should be rendered invisible by not getting covered at all.

[2876]

Agree. Call her out on it.

[fedupwithhypocrisy]

The media should not cover the John McCain campaign, period. The reporters' bff has shut out media-- and the American public by extension.
Corporate media has failed its audience.

[sleek]

Corporate media is a propaganda machine - especially television.

You should see how they work behind the scenes - I have. They put together whatever kind of video package they want to in their editing bays and blast it out to the ignorant masses. Often times ready made video packages are provided to the media from questionable sources and they frequently use them as is. Scary.