Media: Spinning The Truth

This past week, I delved once again into the blogosphere in order to examine the Presidential election from a few outside perspectives, and more specifically the problems that have arisen involving the media and their portrayal of certain issues. Through this examination, I had the opportunity to inspect a few blogs that I had already identified as blogs that were educational, of the utmost caliber and match the IMSA criteria. The first post, comes from The Moderate Voice, which is a blog, that focuses on different political events happening all around the United States and paints it in a light that is right down the middle of the political spectrum. The editor in chief of The Moderate Voice, Joe Gandelman, does a magnificent job of examining the topics which are important in the American political sphere . The specific post that I focus on examines the political satire that the Democratic primary has produced and the way that the cartoonists in the United States shape that the way that the American public can view the Presidential election. The second post comes from the Politco.com and specifically the blog by Jonathan Martin. This post shows the spin that can be put on viral videos, YouTube videos in particular. These two posts show the bias that can result in secondary media sources, which are able to sometimes reach more than the mainstream media. The comments I left on both blogs can be found below.

Comment:
I greatly enjoyed your article on the effects that the Presidential Election is having on pop culture and the way that cartoonists specifically are taking advantage of it in order to show the election in a light that would normally not happen in a normal newspaper. The question that comes to my mind is what kind of effect that this would have on the election in general, and if this political satire does a great deal of harm. A specific example of the trouble that political satire can have is what happened in Denmark and their political cartoon mishap. The truth of the matter is that political comedy can have a positive and negative effect on the way that the American public views the Presidential election and politics in general. I believe there are positives when it comes to political satire because it helps for some of the public, who might not normally be exposed to politics, to have a chance to see what is going on in the world. The other positive to political comedy is that fact that it allows for some comedic relief from a process that can be very demanding and sometimes frustrating, in the way that things are run and handled. Conversely, portraying politics in a comedic light can show that there is no respect for politics and that politics are taken in a joking and light manner. Overall, I believe that your article gives an informative view on what is going on in the coverage of the Presidential election and the artistic manners which have been used to show some issues of the Democratic primary and the Presidential election that are sometimes shied away from.

Comment:
First of all, I greatly enjoyed this article and your insight on the spin that those with a motive can put on certain issues and how those in the limelight are more susceptible to this type of behavior. I believe that the work of Mr. Habeeb and others who decide to take actual news and apply their own spin have a detrimental effect on the part of the American public who is trying to reach out and learn about the issues at hand. The work of Mr. Habeeb especially, with his YouTube video, is very harmful. YouTube is a high volume site which attracts a diverse group of people and once a video begins to climb with the number of hits that it has, it grows and has even more exposure and people tend to believe that what is said or portrayed in that video is the gospel truth, as a result of the manner in which it was portrayed. This affects those who do not take the time to do their research on a candidate or the election in general, and are easily swayed by something that is as visual or persuasive as a YouTube video which has segments cut out to perfectly fit the agenda of a person who has a bias against a certain candidate or issue. Another pertinent issue, which arises with YouTube videos and their ability to promote one’s bias, is the fact that they are hard to trace. This allows for a large number of people to promote their bias and agenda without fear of being blamed, until they would like to claim credit in the case of Mr. Habeeb. Mr. Habeeb video is not the only one that has taken a stab at Senator Obama, a recent viral video also on YouTube, attacks Obama hard. In conclusion, these videos have the potential to be very dangerous in affecting the general American public in a negative manner. In a perfect world, each citizen would do avid research and find out if what they had seen was truly the truth, but since we live in an imperfect world something must be done to curtail the slander and libel occurring on the Internet.

The Clinton Campaign: An All-Star Cast Coming Up Short

Senator Hillary Clinton has been a woman that has continually placed herself in various situations that have helped to put her in very prominent positions. She has been the First Lady and is now a Senator in New York fighting to be the Democratic nominee for the 2008 Presidential Election. Senator Clinton’s campaign has been greatly fueled by the fact that her husband is President William Jefferson Clinton. Senator Clinton has had the privilege of having a great deal of talented members as a part of her campaign. Although her campaign has a star studded crew, in the past few months her campaign has been riddled with problems. As time goes on, Senator Clinton will have to decide how she wants her campaign to be remembered and the steps she wants to take regarding her campaign.

One of the greatest problems that the Clinton campaign has had to deal with has been the financial situation of the campaign. As the Clinton campaign goes on it has struggled to advertise, campaign, maintain good publicity and stay afloat with the small amount of funds that they have had available. In comparison to the McCain and Obama campaigns, the Clinton campaign had more overall support and funding coming into the nomination process. The steam of the Clinton campaign has been dying down as the race to the Democratic nomination and possible road to the White House continues. Senator Clinton continues to tell her supporters and those whose vote she is attempting to garner, that she is the only Democratic candidate that can "beat the Republican attack machine." Clinton assures her supporters that she will be able to run a successful campaign that will beat the Republican nominee, while she continues to have trouble with her staff and her campaign, in general.

A particular problem that the Clinton campaign has run into has been the resignation or forced resignation of a number of prominent people involved in the campaign. Some were forced to resign because of slander directed at Senator Obama and his campaign, Geraldine Ferraro resigned from a position she claimed not to have held, and a change occurred at the top of the campaign in February, when Patti Sollis Doyle, Clinton campaign manager, resigned from her position. The most recent blow to the Clinton campaign has been the resignation of Senator Clinton's strategist Mark Penn. Senator Clinton and her campaign are attempting to spin the resignation, by showing that Penn met with Colombia on his accord for his PR company, and Penn even admitted that his meeting with the Colombian government was an error in judgment, an admission which resulted in his company losing the Colombian contract. The Penn resignation might be of some help to Hillary, rather than a hindrance because of the amount of division Penn brought to the campaign , in contrast to his advice. This only speaks volumes to what has already been going on in the Clinton campaign and has been hindering forward progress, resulting in the Obama campaign gaining momentum. The Clinton campaign needs to work on coming together and , at least outwardly, show that the campaign can stand as one and does not have any holes.

There are a few questions that Senator Clinton must ponder in the coming weeks and possible months that may lay ahead. The biggest question is if she will stay in the Democratic nomination race and if she does, how will she and her campaign staff curtail some of the damage that has been done by Senator Clinton herself, and her campaign. A large number of people believe that it is time for Senator Clinton to drop out of the Democratic nomination race, although in the current polls (conducted by Rasmussen Reports), Senator Clinton is only losing by 8 percentage points. The call for Senator Clinton to step down and concede this race comes largely from a belief that Senator Obama has gained momentum. An issue that overshadows momentum in the Democratic nomination is trust. The American people have to believe that whomever the Democratic nominee is, they can trust that person and they way that they will run their campaign. Aside from the comments that Samantha Power made about Senator Clinton, the Obama campaign has run a fairly clean campaign thus far.

In the end, the final question is will the handicap that Senator Clinton began this Democratic nomination race with because of her husband and his success as the President of the United States hold up, or will the steady gait of the Obama campaign overtake the Clinton dynasty. The superdelegates and the American people have a say in whom the Democratic nominee will be, and they must keep in mind whom they are voting for. Those who are on the side of Senator Clinton need to remember that this will not be Bill's third term, if Senator Clinton is elected she will be the President not her husband.

An In-depth Look: Resources Analyzing American Politics

I attempted to search the blogosphere once again in order to find helpful resources regarding the upcoming election and the political process of the United States. These are slightly more insightful than those I previously found, but still match the criteria set by Webby and IMSA, respectively, and can be found in my linkroll. Election 08' , a political blog, by the Care 2 website follows the 2008 Presidential Election. This blog contains videos and articles highlighting different aspects of the Presidential race. Donklephant is a blog that maintains to offer an independent assessment of the Presidential elections. The Green Papers is a also a blog that offers insight on the Presidential election with an emphasis on the environmental agenda. Divided We Stand, United We Fall, is a blog that takes the controversial approach on most things affecting America in the political realm. Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections, is a blog that analyzes the election by compiling different polls and primary results and formulating an educated decision about where the Presidential race is headed. Centerfield, is a moderate blog which offers some thoughts on, not only the structure of American politics but takes on the world as well. Reliable Politics also makes an attempt at analyzing world politics but focuses on the United States and the current state of the Union and the issues shaping that current state. Teagan Goddard's Political Wire, is a blog that attempts to scrutinize what Teagan Goddard seems to think is wrong with the American political system and where it is currently headed. The Debate Link, is a blog which follows a wider range of political events in the United States and correlates them to the American Presidential election and the elections also occurring around the world. The last blog that I recommend is The Moderate Voice, which is a well constructed blog with multiple well-written contributers, which paints America and it's politics in a light that is hopeful and truthful at the same time, giving it's readers news and hope about the American political system. All of these blogs and websites give their opinion on the news that is currently affecting the general populace of the United States, when it comes to the political spectrum, and do a great job.

The 2008 Presidential Election: A Global Perspective

The 2008 Presidential election has been in the limelight of the news all over the United States. This is fitting obviously because the outcome will have a large impact on the dynamic of the United States. There are many different variables and catalysts, which could influence different shifts in the political composition of America. For the first time in United States history, a female Democratic candidate, an African-American Democratic candidate and a 72-year-old Republican war veteran could all be the next leader of the free world. The truth of the matter is that the citizens of the United States are not the only ones who are paying attention to the outcome of the primaries and the election itself. In general, the problem with the inhabitants of the United States is that everything is held from a geocentric point of view and no one stops to consider what the outside world might think. Although the United States ignores the politics and make up of the outside world for the most part, they do not and inspect the United States with the uttermost scrutiny. It is sometimes necessary to observe what the other 95 percent of the world might think about what is happening in the United States, and a world-view is advantageous in illuminating the inner workings of the Presidential Election that might be otherwise hidden by American propaganda.

A particular part of the world that has held the political make up of the United States under a microscope has been Europe. The Europeans have always placed a great deal of importance on politics and the politics of the United States are something that they pay particular attention to because of past history. A newspaper that has been reflecting on the ongoing battle across the Atlantic is The Guardian. A recent article by The Guardian illustrates a certain part of the election that has been harped on repeatedly and that is the issue of "superdelegates" deciding the Democratic nominee. This piece of literature shows the side of the outside world that attempts to weigh in on the election and offer a balance of opinions and inform the UK's general public about what is occurring in the United States and the reasons behind those decisions and outcomes. On the other hand, The Scotsman shows a side that might be more pointed and blunt. In the article, 'Hillary Clinton's a monster': Obama aide blurts out attack in Scotsman interview, Gerri Peev a writer for The Scotsman highlights a few retorts made by Obama's aide, Samantha Power, after the barrage of attacks that Hillary Clinton waged on Senator Obama in the past few weeks. This specific article criticizes both sides of the Democratic primary on different levels. The way that this article is written, employs both the interview with Power and factual evidence, forming a somewhat balanced argument. Gerri Peev shows the moves that Senator Clinton made that cast her as a victim and contrasts that with the way in which Miss Power chose to respond.

As one looks at the Presidential Election from a world view it is also necessary to make an attempt at pinpointing which candidate might be the favorite of the world or specific countries. There are many opinions on the election globally, just as there are in the United States. The Times of the United Kingdom, recently published an article in which Andrew Sullivan refers to the Clinton family as "a horror film that never ends." Another article refers to Senator Obama as the popular candidate but not a candidate that should be the President of the United States. A large sentiment from the global perspective seems to be that the world would be more pleased with a Democratic President rather than another Republican one. Republican candidate Senator McCain is attempting to change this particular global sentiment and the thoughts of the American people by conducting a tour of Europe and the Middle East. This trip to Europe and the Middle East is Senator McCain's way of reaching out and showing the American people that he is serious about this election and that he will be able to have a dominant global presence and conduct himself and the country in the best way possible.

In the end, a conclusion can be reached as to why the citizens of America pay little or no attention to the politics or makeup of other countries. Americans love to be the center of attention and when they have to pay attention to other global occurrences it is a reminder that there are others who matter in the world. The truth is that the United States is a large powerhouse in the global sphere and the focus of the world on America and, specifically the election, gives the population of the United States a false bravado. The American voter needs to learn to remember what they have wanted in the past and not forget the issues when it comes to the candidate that they like. A majority of Americans need to learn to balance the pride of being an American with that of being globally aware. The election process in general will be strengthened if the American populace begins to examine the issues from the perspective of a citizen as well as removing themselves from the situation and analyzing it from an outsider's perspective.

The Election: Making an Educated Decision

This week, I searched the Internet and the blogosphere for resources that would be helpful when analyzing the upcoming election. There are a great number of sources on the Internet and in the blogosphere on the subject of the election, but only a few are truly helpful and reputable. I have consulted ten resources and I have placed them in my linkroll, for easy access. The first is CQ Moneyline. CQ Moneyline helps to shed light on the finances of different campaigns, the allocation of money who has it, who does not, and the role of lobbyists in those respective campaigns. The second resource is a blog entitled Election Law. Election Law delves into the election, as well as voting rights, the place of the courts and the law in relation to politics. The Federal Election Commision, which is my third resource, provides the background for the presidential, house and senate elections and different reports and data on the respective elections. While the FEC provides the background, CNN.com's Path to the Presidency:Election Center 2008 highlights different stories and issues that deal with the election and their positive and negative effect on each respective candidate. Politifact.com examines different rumors circulating about the election and analyzes their authenticity. Pollingreport.com shows different polls that have been taken throughout the United States which help to show the sentiment of the citizens of the U.S. on certain issues, specifically the politics of the country. As PollingReport gauges the country, Rock the Vote, is devoted to motivating the younger population of the United States to vote and have a political presence. U.S. Electoral College, the eight resource, educates the reader about the Electoral College, what it is, and how it affects the election, and even has an electoral college calculator so that one can see the possible election results. The ninth resource, WatchBlog, analyzes political news from three different vantage points: Republicans and Conservatives, Democrats and Liberals and Independents. The final resource I uncovered this week was OntheIssues.org. On the Issues, allows the reader to examine political leaders and the stance they have taken on issues in the past and presently. On the Issues also provides VoteMatch Quiz which allows the reader to examine which candidate they might align most closely with. The blogs that I have mentioned meet the IMSA criteria for paramount blogs and at least satisfy the intermediate qualifications of the rubric. The websites I have mentioned follow the Webby criteria almost perfectly. Collectively, these blogs and websites show that there are resources available to the citizens of the United States that would be helpful in making decision about the election and being informed citizens.

Political Slander: Does it Help or Hurt a Campaign?

The blogosphere is a region in which a multitude of thoughts and ideas reside on a number of issues affecting a specific niche of people or the population of the world at large. I took some time this week to explore the blogosphere and see what it has to offer. A specific part of the blogosphere, in which I took a personal interest, is in the 2008 Presidential election. A great deal of issues have come up regarding the way that each of the Presidential candidates have been running their respective campaigns. One of the ways, in which the candidates have been attempting to fire up their campaigns has been through attacking other candidates and their platforms. I explored a couple of posts regarding these attacks that have been occuring in the 2008 Presidential campaign. The first post that I explored on this subject is "Desperate Clinton Grabs at Straws to Attack Obama" by Mark C. Eades who is a writer and humanities educator based in the San Francisco Bay Area. His post discusses the negative shift that Sen. Clinton has had to take against Sen. Obama and his campaign. The second post "McCain Attacks Obama on Pakistan;Unilateral U.S. Attacks in Pakistan Could Increase" is by Arif Rafiq, a policy and communications consultant, based in New York. His post discusses the attacks by President Bush and Sen. McCain against Obama and his supposed plans for Pakistan. I have offered my comments on their posts below as well as directly on the authors’ respective blogs.

Comment:
I thoroughly enjoyed your post and the manner in which you discussed the shift that Sen. Hillary Clinton has had to make in order to ensure that she does not fall behind in the race for the democratic nomination. As evidence comes out that Sen. Clinton is falling behind she is attempting to salvage her campaign strategy and she is doing so by taking an aggressive stance towards Sen. Obama and his campaign tactics. She has had to make this shift because Sen. Obama has moved a great deal of his focus from Sen. Clinton and has began to look ahead, fixating on the issues at hand in the general election and has started to engage Sen. McCain. While Sen. Obama sidesteps Clinton and gives off the vibe that she is no longer a threat, she is forced to address Sen. Obama in some manner. In the past few days, the manner in which she has chosen to engage Sen. Obama has been through attacking his speeches and his lack of interest in debating Sen. Clinton. While I understand the reasoning behind Sen. Clinton wanting more debates in order to raise money and free time, I feel that the way she is going about the process itself is childish and unprofessional. While I appreciate your thoughts and your overall understanding of what has gone on, I wonder if these negative tactics might help Sen. Clinton because of the public who might take her at her word. Sen. Clinton scolds Sen. Obama for using the words of a supporter, Deval Patrick, while she twists the words of her opponent and chants "Yes we will" as Sen. Obama says, "Yes we can". It will be interesting to see the outcome of the work Sen. Clinton and if her negative tirade will motivate those who were on the Obama bandwagon to switch sides and vote for Sen. Clinton and her "clean" campaign.

Comment:
I appreciated your well informed post regarding the attack on Sen. Obama's foreign policy by Sen. McCain in an attempt to go on the offensive and attack the a large issue that is at the forefront of the 2008 Presidential election. I enjoy the way in which you show the comment by President Bush and Sen. McCain and rebut their comments not with your own words but with the words of Sen. Obama himself. I agree with your analysis of the situation when it comes to the way in which Sen. McCain and President Bush handled the situation in their attempt to solidify Sen. McCain's foreign policy when conversely compared to that of Sen. Obama. My thoughts however are that this kind of behavior can be harmful to the United States globally. Since Pakistan is one of our allies, I don't think that it plays favorably in the interest of the nation to accuse a possible Presidential candidate of attacking a country with which the United States is currently in good graces. I believe this kind of an attack goes beyond differentiating between the foreign policies of a few candidates who are vying for the Presidency. I think that it is hard to motivate a country to come together and vote for who they think will be the best leader for the country, when those leaders are bickering amongst each other over a few false statements that are made in order to bolster a campaign. Overall, I believe that the Presidential campaign is a time for the country to come together and in order for that to happen, I think that the candidates should be careful which parts of the campaign which they choose attack.

Endorsements: The Importance Of A Few Words

The support of Chuck Norris and Arnold Schwarzenegger, the smile of Oprah Winfrey, the songs of the Grateful Dead, are all examples of famous icons influencing the election process in whatever way they can. These endorsements have been crucial in the way the Presidential campaign has been run, and the outcome of the primaries thus far. The endorsement of Oprah Winfrey for Senator Barack Obama seemed to be a great asset to his campaign. In other words, Oprah’s decision to support Obama ultimately swayed thousands of female voters who might have otherwise voted for Hillary to do the same.

In order to understand what these endorsements truly mean to these candidates, it is necessary to observe the public and their views of those icons who endorse candidates. A Gallup poll conducted in October showed that "37 percent [of Americans] said endorsements from prominent Americans are a 'very' or 'somewhat' important factor in helping them decide on a candidate. Sixty-one percent said endorsements are of little or no importance to them." As candidates continue to drop out of the race because of a lack of funding or a lack of support, these endorsements have begun to play a much larger role in the Presidential race. The range of endorsements vary from celebrities to present day and former politicians. These endorsements generally seem to gain more importance as the Presidential race progresses. Without money or support presidential candidates stand little to no chance of winning the favor the public. Endorsements of particular importance are those of former candidates who are no longer in the Presidential campaign. There are examples of this currently happening amidst both the Republican and Democratic candidates; senators Obama and Clinton are vying for the endorsement of John Edwards, while Mitt Romney has chosen to endorse Senator McCain in the run for the White House.

An endorsement that held the attention of many was that of Senator Ted Kennedy and the daughter of John F. Kennedy,Caroline Kennedy, choosing to endorse Barack Obama. Senator Kennedy's decision to endorse Obama has made a large difference in the Obama campaign on a number of levels. Although Senator Kennedy does not have the best track record, the Kennedy name has always been revered in the United States and internationally. The Kennedy endorsements add a great deal to the Obama ticket because Obama has been referred to as the "New Kennedy." On the other hand, President Bush recently spoke out about the race for the Republican nomination and implicitly endorsed Senator McCain. According to President Bush, “the stakes in November are high. Prosperity and peace are in the balance. So with confidence in our vision and faith in our values, let us go forward, fight for victory and keep the White House in 2008." Although President Bush did not come out and explicitly endorse McCain, the choice words he uses to address his audience speak out for Senator McCain. This endorsement is interesting because President Bush and Senator McCain battled in 2000 quite seriously for the Republican nomination. This endorsement is one that is not very likely to hold much weight, as a result of the very low approval rating of President Bush at the moment across the United States.

Endorsements not only help to raise support for Presidential campaign but also help to raise monetary donations in order to keep the respective campaigns going. Monetary endorsements help to keep the campaigns of those in the Presidential race going. Campaign funds are becoming more and more important as time goes on. Senator Hillary Clinton is having trouble funding her own campaign. Last week, Senator Clinton was forced to loan her campaign 5 million dollars in order to keep it going. Contrarily, Senator Obama's grassroots campaign has helped to gather a large number of small contributions, which keep the campaign going strong monetarily. As the race for the overall nomination for each party becomes more intense and heated, monetary and spoken endorsements increase in number and in their importance.

The 2008 Presidential election has been one in which the American people have been very involved and endorsements have played a very large role in swaying the vote of the American public. The voters in America can be placed in two camps, one that scrutinizes the issues surrounding the election and educates themselves on the candidates respective stances on the issues prevalent in the election and the other that votes for the person whom they like the most. In the end, the true question is whether or not the American people will heed the words and support of these prominent people and vote for the candidate their favorite talk show host favors or if they will examine the policy issues and state of the economy at hand. A fusion of these two camps would ultimately be the best for the future of the United States. Time will tell if the stance taken by these icons in the United States will make a lasting impact on the 2008 Presidential election.