Horse-race focused journalists in a horse race of their own

How many reporters does it take?

No, not to screw in a light bulb. Most reporters could manage that single-handedly.

How many does it take to cover a political candidate?

Last Friday, for the second day in a row, the New York Times had nothing better to put on Page One than Not that the Times would agree. No, to the Times, there can never be enough journalists in a wolf pack. They’re so eager to make that case that sometimes they make the opposite argument without realizing it. Case in point: a March 26 Times article about the tragic decision of various news organizations not to pay two grand apiece to fly with Barry. And the media chose in droves not to fly with Hill, either, according to “Press Cutbacks Leave Room on Campaign Bus” by Jacques Steinberg.

Too few reporters hanging out with Hill and Barry?

How sad.

We hear that the public is sick of horse-race stories masquerading as political analysis. Yet here’s the Times boring us with yet another horse race. And the stultifying coverage of Barry’s break with the reverend is just another example of reporters whacking horses till they’re not just dead, but turned into unrecognizable carcasses.

It gets so the contest is among journalists, not politicians.

Talk about insider baseball.

Democracy is in peril, folks! According to the Times, “…the absence of some newspapers on the trail suggests not only that readers are being exposed to fewer perspectives drawn from shoe-leather reporting, but also that fewer reporters will arrive at the White house in January with the experience that editors have typically required to cover the president on Day 1.”

What experience would that be — hefting pints of beer with their favorite candidate?

I get the impression that’s what the reporters who pretend to be covering the campaign from the back of John McCain’s bus spend most of their time doing.

You’d think the republic’s very foundations were threatened because there won’t be enough reporters to chow down with the politicos.

If the only thing reporters can write about is themselves, it’s time for all of them to go home. The smart media are the ones who cut their losses and leave.

Without realizing it, they’ve given themselves a big advantage. Away from the candidates, and more importantly, away from each other, they may stumble upon an original idea.

OK, I’m not holding my breath.

Depend on it — the biggies like the NY Times, LA Times, Chicago Tribune and Washington Post will stay with the horse race. They have to. They’re in their own little horse race to see who can lose the least circulation — and suffer the least loss in share price.

All of them racking up huge bills, screwing in the same light bulb.

Contact me at joelthurtell(at)gmail.com