New Hampshire and the Media

In the aftermath of the media predicting Barack Obama's smashing victory in New Hampshire primary, Mark Feldman, a George Washington University journalism professor, rightly observes that political reporters, particularly the inside-the-Beltway variety, are "superficial sportswriters. Covering the campaign is almost like joining a cult, with a cocoonlike bubble as you travel from event to event. There's a lemminglike quality." Such coverage of presidential campaigns, with its overuse of tired sports metaphors and preoccupation with personalities, does not provide voters with the necessary information about the great issues of the day.