2. The Philadelphia Inquirer There are a lot of predictions and speculation. “Democrats divided on challenging Obama” Who will be running on the Republican ticket There is increasingly more coverage of the 2012 election and most of it is direct. Seem to be taking more of a historical approach in their coverage, referencing a lot of previous elections and presidents such as Reagan and Ford. Again, more focused on state and local elections than national candidates and issues. Keeps the neutral tone between parties.
3. The Philadelphia Inquirer Themes Republican candidates and campaign points (such as healthcare, foreign affairs, education and economy) are main themes in the coverage “GOP presidential hopefuls hammer healthcare” Bachmann: “The ultimate arrogance is Obama-care”… Republican nominees for presidency GOP activists weigh choices for 2012 hoping for another Reagan
4. Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire Coverage: evolved in just one week 2012 GOP Contenders (who is in and who is out) Obama State politics (Wisconsin, Indiana) Tea Party no where to be found Main GOP contenders Huckabee, Romney, Palin, Gingrich, Bachman Polling on favorability Mitt Romney, Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee and Newt Gingrich have all seen their favorability spread fall by margins ranging from 15 to 23 points. Rubio says 2012 not for him "I think the problem is: I just got elected three months ago, and so how can I be a full-time United Sates Senator if my eyes are already on running for something else? ... Even speculating about it is problematic, because when you speculate about it, what you're basically saying is: I'm thinking about something other than the job right now."
5. Political Wire President Obama President Obama "is fewer than three weeks away from formally announcing his reelection campaign, and will make it public with an online video his aides will post on his new campaign website,” Libya Donald Trump and the birth certificate Can anyone in the GOP overcome Obama? Other Coverage Wisconsin- Democrats moving to override GOP Indiana- Back to work in House after walk out Budget debate
6. Politico Already very organized in 2012 election coverage, with a 2012 Live page. Coverage on the page is direct- already has detailed lists of candidates and a lot of information and news stories regarding each one. Candidate tracker, latest polls Most of the current stories, even within the election section, are focused on Libya – “Eye on Libya” How President Obama is handling the situation and how it is effecting his approval ratings/will effect his re-election GOP presidential hopefuls response to the presidents actions “Prez hopefuls take aim at Obama’s Libya speech” http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0311/52109.html “Palin ‘profoundly disappointed’ by Libya speech”
7. Politico Coverage of President Obama within the 2012 Live section There is very little coverage of the president as far as his re-election, and the majority of the coverage he does receive tends to be negative “Haley: Prez thinks voters ‘stupid’” “Newt: Obama leads with his foot” “Palin pounds Obama over Israel” The majority of the 2012 section is focused on the Republican and Tea Party hopefuls Donald Trump, Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, Tim Pawlenty, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, Mike Huckabee, Haley Barbour Outside of the actual election section, most stories do not directly tie back to the election, though some do allude to potential outcomes However, Republicans and Tea Party members still a dominant theme Major Headlines, “Trump fails to produce birth certificate” “Barbour courts Huckabee” “Bachmann to attend Faith conference” “Newt talks faith at a Texas church”
8. Talking Points Memo Liberal slant, most coverage focuses on polls and critiques of GOP Romney for top GOP Pres. Candidate. Heavy emphasis on Tea party Most coverage is not yet on 2012, although moving in that direction Indirect coverage of the election. The effects of Libya on the election http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/03/rumsfeld-obamas-handling-of-libya-worrisome-for-the-military-video.php http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/03/boehner-to-obama-please-provide-clear-answers-on-libya.php A lot of the focus is on the GOP. Again, not a lot of talk about Democratic candidates for President
9. Comparisons There is a lot more focus on 2012 election in the online sources and the coverage is far more direct. Themes of potential Republican nominees common throughout coverage in all sources. All of the sources are gaining speed in covering the 2012 election. Online sources are more compelling because they give you more information Philly is less compelling because it is not as focused and the pieces are not really necessary. Seems to be more of a filler piece in the political section.
10. Comparisons The online sources cover more of the national picture whereas the Philadelphia Inquirer was a lot more focused on the local races. If you are more of a national figure trying to run, your focus should be geared more toward the online sources. As it gets closer to the election, it may be useful to move to more traditional sources. If you are running on a local level it may be more useful to focus on the traditional news sources in your area.
