Social Security, the Candidates and the Media
A curious phenomenon of the presidential campaign has been that the least popular Democratic candidate, Bruce Babbitt, has drawn the most favorable media treatment, while the most popular political demand has received the least favorable media treatment. The New York Times (1/20/88) noted raves for Babbitt in Time, Newsweek, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the New Republic and Washington Monthly. It also mentioned the Times' own front-page analysis of the Democratic candidates' economic programs, which led off with the assertion that except for Babbitt, they offered "no clear prescriptions" for the deficit problem. That article, like media coverage ...
Questionnaire for the New York Times on Its Central America Coverage
On Jan. 23, 1988, FAIR sent a questionnaire -- excerpted below -- to senior New York Times editors and correspondents covering Central America. It challenged Times coverage following the signing of the Esquipulas ("Arias") regional peace accord, which required all Central American countries to respect human and political rights, and called for an end to all outside support for rebel movements. In a written response, a Times editor referred to the questionnaire as an "indictment" -- but promised that "my colleagues and I will study your questionnaire and put it in the hands of our correspondents." The Reagan ...
