Reticent & Removed? Get Used to It!
This story details Barack Obama's inaccessibility to the press -- remarkable, especially given the almost uniformly glowing coverage he's received.
Well, the press had better get used to it. Barack the glad-hander may give the impression that he's a warm, fuzzy, accessible guy. But his style of leadership -- at least once he has the job -- is anything but. He was a largely absentee President of the Harvard Law Review, and approachability was never his strong suit. When the New York Times' Michael Powell described him as possessing a "Barcalounger manner about him these days, padding about those campaign stages like a man commanding his den," it was all too reminiscent of his style at Gannett House (home of the Review) during his law school days . . . at least when he showed up. Barack was famous for "working from home."
That being said, whatever Barack does, don't expect the press coverage to become too critical. GOP'ers aren't the only ones afraid of coming across as racist -- and no good liberal reporter will want to be accused of having crippled the campaign of the first African American with a real shot to be President.
Well, the press had better get used to it. Barack the glad-hander may give the impression that he's a warm, fuzzy, accessible guy. But his style of leadership -- at least once he has the job -- is anything but. He was a largely absentee President of the Harvard Law Review, and approachability was never his strong suit. When the New York Times' Michael Powell described him as possessing a "Barcalounger manner about him these days, padding about those campaign stages like a man commanding his den," it was all too reminiscent of his style at Gannett House (home of the Review) during his law school days . . . at least when he showed up. Barack was famous for "working from home."
That being said, whatever Barack does, don't expect the press coverage to become too critical. GOP'ers aren't the only ones afraid of coming across as racist -- and no good liberal reporter will want to be accused of having crippled the campaign of the first African American with a real shot to be President.
posted by LadybugUSA at 7:31 PM
2 Comments:
From an article in the October 8, 2004 edition of the Washington Post entitled, Bush's Isolation From Reporters Could Be a Hindrance one reads...
The president has stopped taking questions from the small pool of reporters who cover his photo opportunities, and he has answered questions from the White House press corps twice since Aug. 23, both times with interim Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi at his side. His last prime-time news conference was April 13.
Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.
Well it looks like the press might have to contend with either looking Racist, sexist or ageist? Barack is a hard person to hit admittedly because his political resume is light because of his youth. His campaign aims to transcend the usual playbook, so its almost moot hitting him on Policy or anything else.
it would be nice to see him get tested more- but how and with what?
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