Has the Media Written Off Michele Bachmann?
COMMENTARY | During the Republican foreign policy debate Saturday night, Rep, Michele Bachmann did not get too many questions in comparison to other candidates such as Mitt Romney, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, and even Rick Perry.
An intercepted email from John Dickenson, the newly appointed political director for CBS News, one of the sponsors of the debate, suggests that this was by deliberate design. The Bachmann campaign is pretty sure this is the result of liberal media bias. But the real reason seems to be a little more insidious. CBS News has concluded that Bachmann, who is polling consistently in the low single digits, does not have a chance of winning the nomination and thus is not worthy of too much media attention.
CBS News may be correct in its assessment. On the other hand, recent history suggests that the news network may be playing with hubris. Even in this election cycle, candidates have risen and fallen with astonishing rapidity. Yesterday's front runner can be today's also ran and vice-versa. The Rise and fall of Rick Perry and the fall and rise of Newt Gingrich provides a caution to making assumptions based on poll numbers.
At this point during the 2008 election cycle, the front runners for the Republican and Democratic parties were Rudi Guiliani and Hillary Clinton respectively. While the eventual Democratic nominee was close behind Clinton, the eventual Republican nominee, John McCain, was polling at about nine percent.
These statistics have no bearing on whether Bachmann has a chance of pulling off the nomination or not. But it does suggest that CBS News is being unfair in relegating her to a second class presidential candidate. Bachmann did win the Ames Straw Poll. She has a pretty good shot at doing well in the Iowa Caucus, thus improving her chances as the campaign cycle grinds on.
On the other hand, Bachmann has taken full advantage of the questions she was asked in the past five debates, giving long, coherent answers. She has spoken a total of 41 minutes in recent debates, just behind Mitt Romney and Rick Perry. She is therefore getting her message across, despite her treatment by some in the media.
Sources: Bachmann campaign: CBS email 'concrete evidence' of liberal media bias, Will Rahn, The Daily Caller, Nov 12, 2011
Democratic presidential race tightens: poll, John Whitesides, Nov 21, 2007
Published by Mark Whittington
Mark R. Whittington is a writer residing in Houston, Texas. He is the author of The Last Moonwalker, Children of Apollo, Dark Sanction, and Nocturne. He has written numerous articles, some for the Washington... View profile
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