Sometimes the Public Gets What It Deserves - Part 1

Earlier this week, a group of leading political journalists gathered at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., for a forum on media coverage of the 2008 presidential campaign.

In response to an audience member who asked why there seemed to be more coverage of personalities than issues, ABC News Senior Political Correspondent Jake Tapper suggested that issues may not be what consumers want to watch.

“It would be great if ABC, NBC and CBS news could each do an hour devoted to each candidate’s health care proposal and be guaranteed that 30 to 40 million Americans would watch it, but that’s not the world we live in.”

Tapper’s point is well taken. His comments came during the Newseum’s Journalists’ Roundtable on the 2008 Election. The event was televised on C-Span and is available online on the C-Span Campaign 2008 Page.