I swear, nothing comes easy. Obama has come from 20-plus points down in Pennsylvania to polling at or near the margin of error. And the Washington Post gives a headline: Obama Tries to Hold Off Favored Clinton in Pa.. In fact, the front page headline just says Obama Tries to Hold Off Clinton without even mentioning that she is favored? What’s next? ‘New York Giants Beat the Patriots, As Expected’?
About The Author

BooMan
Martin Longman a contributing editor at the Washington Monthly. He is also the founder of Booman Tribune and Progress Pond. He has a degree in philosophy from Western Michigan University.
that is pathetically transparent. In the ’90s the Clintons had the media against them when they were perceived as having their finger in the dike against Newt Gingrich and his band of merry reactionaries. Now that the Clintons have embraced scorched Earth racist/xenophobic Gingrich tactics, we have headlines like this to tilt the expectations game against Obama. Partly this can be attributed to the press wanting the horse race to go on. But I’m also convinced the corporatist media (a term I prefer over mainstream media) perceives Clinton as a devil they know. Not a threat. Whereas Obama supporters are truth tellers and that scares the living shit out of them.
I don’t like the term “mainstream media” either. But why “corporatist media”? What’s wrong with the more conventional “corporate media”?
‘corporatist’ is blogosophere lingua. Wapo on the upper tier. Took them a long time to report Obama won 30 states was leading Karl R. Clinton in the delegate and vote count.
via TPM this must read NYT piece on the manipulators at work -woven into the fabric, throughout media spectrum – print and electronic including radio, by stratedic alliances or outright ownership:
Behind TV Analysts, Pentagon’s Hidden Hand
Manufacturing consent of the governed, alive and expanding.
Clinton is not a threat. Neither one of them is. Just a glimpse at his domestic and foreign business deals added to her campaign staff tells you all you need to know.
They are corporatists. Through and through.
As much as I hate coming to the defense of the WaPo, I think that headline makes sense when viewed in the context of Obama’s overall lead in the primaries. He is leading the race, therefore he is trying to “hold off” Clinton, but she is favored in Pennsylvania.
It’s poorly written, and a confusing construction, but I don’t think it’s necessarily evidence of nefarious intent or bias on the part of the editors.
Ditto.
Headlines aren’t accidents. If it was poorly written, it was undoubtedly for a reason.
If it’s so stupid…how come it is so dominant?
Even YOU put stock in it.
NEWSTRIKE!!!
It’s the only solution.
AG
Fascinating video lecture with Rupert Smith who says “I consider the media is just like the weather, another medium within which you operate, and about as controllable.” Which I thought interesting considering that Butterfly Effect gentleman.
Just got a text from First Read saying a new poll has it at Clinton 48-43 Obama.
was that a poll done by Clinton staffers or abc?
Mason-Dixon, which, granted, is apparently not a reliable one. Zogby has it at three points separating them. PPP will allegedly release tomorrow.
What worries me is that he seems pinned down at about 43% in every poll, with no real movement beyond that (the occasional 44-45% from Ras or PPP notwithstanding).
Both MSNBC and McClatchy were parties to this poll and have their own analyses of the results.
From what I could glean, the highest %age of undecideds were in areas where one might expect them to break for Clinton. The overall Clinton lead is within the margin of error.
More of the same after the ABC, Charlie & George Show
The Giants beat the Patriots?!!
Huge Obama slump in the Gallup daily tracking poll is alarming. Over the past two months he had been gradually pulling away and was holding steady above 50% for the last ten days. Then the debate and boom! He drops and Hillary rises. How depressing can it get for a show like ABC’s to have what appears to be a substantial influence on the race. Hopefully only momentary.
Within 24 hours Newsweek put Obama up by 19 nationally and another poll that put Hillary ahead of Obama nationally by one point. At a certain point, and I guess it’s this weekend, I’m ready to give up on polls and wait to see results. Poor Big Top Democrat over at Talkleft is spinning out of control with polls between clinging to stories about how Obama is bad and can’t win. I wouldn’t want to end up a drooling opposite.
What’s clear is that after the last primary Clinton was up by twenty in Pennsylvania. Over the last month that seems to have closed. I hope it closes enough to end it Tuesday night, but I suspect it won’t.
Twelve months ago it was the inevitability of McCain vs. Clinton.
Nine months ago it was the end of McCain and Hillary was so inevitable she became a non-story.
Six months ago it became “Well, who else is running even though they’ll lose.”
Four months ago it became Obama and Huckabee in Iowa.
Three months ago it became Obama and Romney as the new rising stars.
Two months ago it became McCain and Clinton’s glorious comeback.
Last month it was McCain watching as outsider Clinton was fighting against inevitable Obama.
This month we’ve come full circle: the inevitability of McCain vs Clinton.
I’ve said time and time again the Village won’t allow any other outcome but McCain and Clinton, and they’re in the tank for President McCain and always have been.
12 months ago, it was Clinton vs. Giuliani, even though I I don’t think he had even announced then. Giuliani was the favorite up until the middle of January.
Armando aka BTD and that hack Jeralyn need some serious doses of valium, they are just spinning like dervishes over anything Obama…….
I go to that site after a martini for a big laugh…although in actuality it is pathetic
It’s kinda scary. The Greek chorus over at TL are agreeing with McCain that Obama hasn’t fully explained his relationship to Ayers. Perhaps they’ve got something about the Weathermen sponsoring stickball games for kids back in the late sixties.
Poor eriposte over at the Left Coaster has up one of his long posts analyzing whether Obama made an obscene gesture.
These people need to get far, far away from the media and politics and listen to the birds and smell the flowers. Empty the clutter out of their heads.