Kamela Harris reclaims power back from the press corps

[RobDownSouth]

We're seeing something new in the political election cycle this year: an alliance between the center-left press corps and the fringe whackadoodle right wing fascists. Both are mewling "but...but....Kamela won't speak to the meeeeeeeedia!"

Why? Because she doesn't need to speak to the media. She has learned lessons from both convicted felon Donald J Trump and incumbent President Joe Biden that the media has their own agenda, one not grounded in "facts" any longer, but in "vibes".

If you were to just look at the transcript of the Biden-Trump presidential debate, without having watched it, you'd presume that Biden was the clear victor. Trump dissembled, refused to answer questions, rambled various grievances from his stump speech and generally embarrassed himself. Biden gave thoughtful answers on questions of policies. Yet the press simply disregarded Trump's wretched spittle-flecked oratory ("Trump's gonna Trump") and pilloried President Biden, because Trump was "energetic" and Biden "appeared old".

In other words: Vibes.

Even if I agreed that candidates who want to be president should be regularly subjected to media scrutiny, I don’t think this press corps, as it is currently organized, is able to. There are exceptions, of course, but this press corps is generally not equipped to scrutinize candidates on matters of fact and substance. I say this because this press corps has conspicuously traded matters of fact and substance for vibes.

It didn’t matter what Joe Biden did

• pull the country out of a pandemic,
• dodge a recession,
• tame inflation,
• grow jobs,
• grow wages,
• enforce anti-monopoly laws,
• revive every single one of the so-called “left behind” counties that voted for Trump in 2016 because of “economic anxiety”

– it didn’t matter what Joe Biden did. The press corps decided nothing was more important than his age, and lo! 2024 became an election about vibes and vibes ended his candidacy.

...
There was a time when liberals and Democrats would have nodded in agreement with Chris Cillizza on the merit of candidates being regularly subjected to scrutiny. But after this press corps made a fetish of Biden’s age, I don’t see any more room for the benefit of the doubt – and there’s no going back. This press corps made the election about vibes and it’s going to remain an election about vibes, and if those vibes now grind against the instincts of this press corps, tough shit.

You reap what you sow.

Kamala Harris is taking power back from the press corps​

Harris is simply not allowing the press corps to control the narrative in this election cycle.

This editorial is fascinating. A number of people in the press corps, egged on by the fringe right, appears to want to argue that Harris has violated some unwritten taboo that she MUST kowtow to the Beltway Press.

She's not doing this, and chances are very high that she won't need to do this prior to election day.
The fact that she is "not Trump" guarantees her a substantial portion of the voting public.

 

[schism666]

i fucking love this.

 

[HorridHarris]

I'm so happy to have such gullible fools in my side, a BJ to you.

 

[Lazaran]

Who are the quotes from???

 

[RobDownSouth]

Apologies that I hit the submit button halfway through writing the above.

 

[RobDownSouth]

Who are the quotes from???

Sorry about that, I hit the submit button while formatting. Link is in post now.

 

[ll74]

I don't like this take at all. She should have interviews. I expected them last week.

 

[RobDownSouth]

I don't like this take at all. She should have interviews. I expected them last week.

I disagree, I think this is the correct take for Harris. The hyper-polarized media deserves to be reigned in, and this is a prime opportunity to do so.

We live in interesting times.

 

[ll74]

I disagree, I think this is the correct take for Harris. The hyper-polarized media deserves to be reigned in, and this is a prime opportunity to do so.

I am fine with less interviews. I'm not with no interviews. I also think there are votes to be had from people who would watch.

We live in interesting times.

We do

 

[Rotadom]

I am fine with less interviews. I'm not with no interviews. I also think there are votes to be had from people who would watch.

Agreed. She just doesn't need to use them as an ego boost like the insecure orange chump.

 

[RobDownSouth]

I am fine with less interviews. I'm not with no interviews. I also think there are votes to be had from people who would watch.

I actually agree with you.

I'd normally post a relevant quote from the article I linked to that was discussing this, but the morally compromised HisDerpy has made it his mission in life to get me banhammered ( stoopid HisDerpy!) and I would not want to violate Lit's Terms of Service by exceeding the five paragraph maximum quote when Lit's self-appointed hall monitor is skulking about.

Instead I'll refer you to the last three short paragraphs of the link I provided in the original post. Chris Cizzilla, the former fair-haired Golden Child of the Washington Post, has anointed himself the spokesperson for the General Public, and the editorial points out that Cizzilla has as much of an agenda as, say, Sean Hannity.

Basically Harris has an obligation to answer questions from the public. The press is not the public....not this cycle anyway.

 

[schism666]

I'm so happy to have such gullible fools in my side, a BJ to you.

you're horrid at making sense, bb.

 

[Chernosoth]

Corporate media is losing its audience to anyone with a microphone or keyboard.

 

[RobDownSouth]

Gotta love it!

Fox News Digital cornered Harris campaign manager Julie Rodriguez and whined "when will Kamela Harris have a press conference? It's been 33 days now!"

Rodriguez smiled and left the building without saying a word.

Fox then pivoted to their usual editorializing

The lack of access to Harris on her presidential campaign could foreshadow what can be expected in terms of transparency out of a Harris and Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn., administration.

#WhyWontSheTalkToTheMeeeeeeeedia?

Because she is not Donald Trump, jabroni!

 

[MajorRewrite]

Harris talks daily.

What upsets some media people is that they don’t get to talk. Ego.

 

[ll74]

Harris talks daily.

What upsets some media people is that they don’t get to talk. Ego.

She talks daily....correct. she tells people what she wants them to hear.

The concern isn't about that

 

[Bray123]

Harris doesn't want to repeat the errors of the past, notably the 1960 Nixon-Kennedy debate which Nixon won according to radio listeners but TV viewers saw the sweaty mess of Nixon's face and voted for Kennedy.

 

[RobDownSouth]

She talks daily....correct. she tells people what she wants them to hear.

The concern isn't about that

She has watched what President Joe Biden has done.

President Biden has allowed unprecedented access to the "behind the scenes" at the White House.

Media types looking to grab the next rung of the corporate ladder and become "Talk Show Hosts" have abused this rare privilege to portray the President in terms of their own agenda.

The press' agenda is not the same as the government agenda.

As the philosopher king Dubya once famously intoned "Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice....WE DON'T FOOLED AGAIN!"

 

[ll74]

She has watched what President Joe Biden has done.

President Biden has allowed unprecedented access to the "behind the scenes" at the White House.

Media types looking to grab the next rung of the corporate ladder and become "Talk Show Hosts" have abused this rare privilege to portray the President in terms of their own agenda.

The press' agenda is not the same as the government agenda.

As the philosopher king Dubya once famously intoned "Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice....WE DON'T FOOLED AGAIN!"

Yes, I get that you want her to dictate the message.

Tough questions need to be answered.

Ignoring that doesn't change that fact

There are voters who she can and will gain simply by answering them.

 

[RoryN]

I think it's a problematic tactic.

But I would be lying if I said I wasn't enjoying it. The press has no one but themselves to blame for this.

 

[ll74]

I think it's a problematic tactic.

But I would be lying if I said I wasn't enjoying it. The press has no one but themselves to blame for this.

Of course.....any political campaign would milk all it could

 

[RobDownSouth]

Yes, I get that you want her to dictate the message.

Tough questions need to be answered.

Ignoring that doesn't change that fact

There are voters who she can and will gain simply by answering them.

Normally I'd agree with you.
....but I won't in this election cycle.

We have a generational choice in November: Trump's Fascism vs. Harris' Democracy.

Kamela Harris' policy positions are by and large the polar opposite of Trump's Project 2025 "Road To Fascism" blueprint.

I know that, you know that, and in this hyperpolarized environment being "Anti-Trump" is good enough for me, and I suspect a large number of Americans.

There really are NO "undecideds" left in America. People have chosen sides. All that's left is to count the votes on election day.

Feel free to suggest a "tough question"!

 

[ll74]

Normally I'd agree with you.
....but I won't in this election cycle.

We have a generational choice in November: Trump's Fascism vs. Harris' Democracy.

Kamela Harris' policy positions are by and large the polar opposite of Trump's Project 2025 "Road To Fascism" blueprint.

I know that, you know that, and in this hyperpolarized environment being "Anti-Trump" is good enough for me, and I suspect a large number of Americans.

There really are NO "undecideds" left in America. People have chosen sides. All that's left is to count the votes on election day.

Feel free to suggest a "tough question"!

A tough question would be foreign policy specifics. A tough question would be major legislation proposals. A tough question would be addressing secret service issues. A tough question would be getting into the specifics on her price gouging proposal, which lacks anything specific or qualifying.

There's a ton....those are just off the top of my head.

When the campaign dictates.messaging, the public only hears that. Great for short term voter bumps. Not great for additional voters who want more.

 

[BrightShinyGirl]

A tough question would be foreign policy specifics. A tough question would be major legislation proposals. A tough question would be addressing secret service issues. A tough question would be getting into the specifics on her price gouging proposal, which lacks anything specific or qualifying.

There's a ton....those are just off the top of my head.

When the campaign dictates.messaging, the public only hears that. Great for short term voter bumps. Not great for additional voters who want more.

The Democratic Party has long made the mistake of flooding the electorate with policy details. Most voters don’t want to know. We want someone in office who will pay attention to the details so we don’t have to.

I care about policy details for a few of my pet causes, but I trust Kamala Harris to make the right decision on everything else. And honestly, if it was revealed that she planned to spend billions on expanding highways, I’d still vote for her.

 

[MajorRewrite]

Meh. It’s a two tiered set of expectations.

Trump pretends to do interviews but actually just spews nonsense. And in 8 years he hasn’t provided specifics for any of his threadbare policy proposals. He gets a pass from the media because reasons. He gets pats on the back when he remembers to change his diaper.