Poll: Fifty Percent Says News Coverage Of Sarah Palin Has Been Fair
It looks like the GOP's efforts to persuade the public that the press has been out to "destroy" Sarah Palin are a bit of a bust. Check out these numbers buried in the internals of the new ABC News poll:
Overall, do you think the news coverage of Palin has been fair or unfair?Fair 50%
Unfair 41%
For some reason, more people think the press should actually do its best to tell them something about the person who is running for the second highest office in the land. Silly public.
Meanwhile, that 41% who say the coverage is unfair is probably a GOP baseline, though it should be noted that the McCain campaign's attacks on the media over Palin are largely about goosing the base in any case.
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I always thought th job of the Fourth Estate was to keep our leaders honest, that being the intent of the Founding Fathers and all that.
Seems like America might be coming around again to that point of view.
Cool.
September 5, 2008 10:12 AM | Reply | Permalink
But... the media... it's soooo biased! Wah, wah, wah...
I'm glad that the American public (appears to) sees through the right-wing smog.
http://thepajamapundit.com/
September 5, 2008 10:23 AM | Reply | Permalink
That's exactly who the "media elite" nonsense was targeted at: the Republican base. I couldn't help but laugh when McCain was takling about Palin being a "reformer". She has to be one of the most dyed-in-the-wool Reagan Republicans I've ever seen. Her entire schtick could've been lifted right from Gingrich's playbook.
September 5, 2008 10:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
It's "fair" to the extent that it even exists at all.
Apparently the leisure-set MSM has no problem with her handlers keeping the Stepford Candidate under wraps--no real interviews, just trotting her out on the runway to parrot some words written for her by a man and then pulling her back in on her leash.
September 5, 2008 10:12 AM | Reply | Permalink
Newsweek's Howard Fineman reported today, the McCain campaign is sending Sarah Paintheass back to Alaska to avoid the MSM.
September 5, 2008 10:16 AM | Reply | Permalink
Don't you love this? Here's a woman they are telling us is ready to be the CIC but she has to be protected by all these creepy old guys.
'Is that not demeaning - not just to women but to Americans? They are sequestering the damn veep nominee?
September 5, 2008 10:19 AM | Reply | Permalink
She's in training to become Dick Cheney.
September 5, 2008 10:22 AM | Reply | Permalink
O I wish I'd said that!
LOL!
September 5, 2008 10:25 AM | Reply | Permalink
I was just going to say that they're probably going to keep her in Cheney's bunker until the VP debate.
September 5, 2008 10:44 AM | Reply | Permalink
How does this connect to yesterday's poll that says majority thinks reporters are trying to hurt her? Or is that the poll we like less than this one?
September 5, 2008 10:12 AM | Reply | Permalink
GOP and TPM's trolls -
you forgot to count them -
September 5, 2008 10:13 AM | Reply | Permalink
Consider yourself counted.
September 5, 2008 10:34 AM | Reply | Permalink
I know you worship Tena but is she _really_ God? If so, I have dibs on marketing the wind-up toys!
September 5, 2008 10:38 AM | Reply | Permalink
is it just me, or is the mccain/palin compliance fund a bit against the spirit of campaign finance reform.
September 5, 2008 10:19 AM | Reply | Permalink
Rasmussen Tracker:
Obama 48% McCain 46%
Obama is holding on very well.
September 5, 2008 10:22 AM | Reply | Permalink
Meh. That's with only one day of Post-Palin polling, and it cuts our lead in half . . . so I wouldn't say it's great news.
But I expect it'll be transitory. Last night really sucked for them, what with Walter Reed Middle School and general lameness.
September 5, 2008 10:29 AM | Reply | Permalink
There's some analyses floating around by people trying to figure out the day-by-day figures in the daily trackers, i.e. what was the sample on a given day. The estimate for Monday's figure in Rasmussen (which just dropped out today) had Obama leading by double digits, with low-to-mid single digits since then. Or depending on how Rasmussen weights things (biasing towards the most recent sample), it could be different than this; we'll have to see the Gallup tracker (and tomorrow's results) to be sure.
September 5, 2008 10:34 AM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah saw that new poll. The lead is down slightly probably because a really good previous night fell off the survey. But after 4 night of the GOP convention he still leads by 2 points in the GOP leaning Rasmussen survey.
Palin played to the base...McCain already had them wrapped up. They are more excited now that Palin is on the ticket but they will not win him the election alone.
September 5, 2008 10:30 AM | Reply | Permalink
Last night's Green Jelly and Philly Cheese Speech, the Sequel, will hardly perpetuate this boost.
September 5, 2008 10:53 AM | Reply | Permalink
Don't be surprised if McCain jumps into the lead for a day or two, maybe even by two points. Today's includes polling from yesterday, Wednesday, and Tuesday. Obama likely had a very good day on Monday and a pretty flat day on Tuesday. This is the first one to include the full effect of the Palin speech, hence the significant tightening. I don't think McCain's speech last night will cause the numbers to be any better for him than Wednesday's.
Expect a similar tightening in Gallup.
I kind of expected this so I'm not shocked. One disheartening number in today's Rasmussen report is that Palin's approval numbers are a 58%, higher than both McCain and Obama, who both score 57%. 40% have a "Very Favorable" opinion of her, which beats out Obama's 37% "Very Favorable" number. As usual, McCain (27%) lags in the Very Favorable department.
People are buying the "hockey mom" schtick...at least the folks Rasmussen polls. But they really don't know her yet beyond that speech, which wiped away all of the bad stuff they heard about her in the days leading up to the speech. It's very easy to change voter opinion, especially when expectations are low.
And contra this ABC news poll, a Rasmussen poll has 51% saying that the news coverage of Palin has been unfair, with only 35% saying it has been unbiased. (5% say it is trying to help her) And a majority now say McCain made the right pick in selecting her, with 39% saying she's more experienced than Obama.
Rasmussen's party ID is no 39% Dem and 32% GOP. That's tighter than it's been in a while. But it's probably close to accurate - a lot of former GOPers who were ashamed to align themselves with the party went back to calling themselves Republican after the Palin pick.
September 5, 2008 10:48 AM | Reply | Permalink
You missed this:
Poll: Half Say Palin Doesn’t Have Experience to Be President
ABC News poll shows:
When asked if the veep candidate has the right experience to serve effectively as president, 42% of respondents say yes, 50% say no.
When asked the same question about Biden, 66% say yes, 21% no.
September 5, 2008 10:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
Oops, I see that you had that in the morning roundup. My bad.
September 5, 2008 10:25 AM | Reply | Permalink
That's the kind of thing that makes me want to say Well d'uh.
I honestly never have thought American voters were that dumb and they aren't -
They barely got Bush close enough to steal it twice. And he stole it.
September 5, 2008 10:29 AM | Reply | Permalink
Shouldn't the headline have been something more breathless like:
"Nearly half of public thinks Palin treated unfairly by press!!"
Oh, I see that Gregg wrote this one. Mystery solved.
September 5, 2008 10:26 AM | Reply | Permalink
haha, poor Erik.
September 5, 2008 10:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
And she's not going to do any interviews. She'll do her one debate and then recite stump speeches until the election. She's not a candidate, but an image.
I think it's been unfair - they covered Bristol's pregnancy instead of covering her "Bridge to Nowhere" Lies, her earmark grab and the fact McCain called her on them at the time, running Ted Stevens 527, Troopergate, and looking harder at her background and calling out the ridiculousness of the claims that she was in charge of the Alaskan National Guard, and has National Security cred because she's next to Russia.
September 5, 2008 10:27 AM | Reply | Permalink
Jonze - how is that unfair? These things are relevant to who and what kind of veep she'd be -
Jonze!? How can you say that?
September 5, 2008 10:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
I think you missed the word "instead" in what Jonze wrote. Many of us are upset that the tabloid-type material (which is only relevant in that it brings up her hypocrisy) is drowning out the more relevant material.
September 5, 2008 10:39 AM | Reply | Permalink
But I am convinced that it is all relevant.
Look - I'm not fooling around here - I want my country back and I sure as shit don't want Sarah Palin and John McLame to get their hands on it.
I'm fighting here - for all of us - I do not want to take any chances here and I don't see that keeping secrets about this woman is going further one damn thing to get our country back.
September 5, 2008 10:45 AM | Reply | Permalink
Apparently she is now completely vetted.
Next!
September 5, 2008 10:37 AM | Reply | Permalink
The Stepford Candidate.
September 5, 2008 10:27 AM | Reply | Permalink
Why Jon Stewart is the best political show on television - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1lCMH8rlHE
September 5, 2008 10:35 AM | Reply | Permalink
O he has been on fire this week and so has Stephen Colbert - who is a fucking genius.
I will never forget Colbert addressing the press club banquet - talk about 5000 cracks in a ceiling - he cracked the bubble around Bush. Single-handedly.
September 5, 2008 10:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
I'll never forget that either. Colbert was devastating.
September 5, 2008 11:48 AM | Reply | Permalink
Stewart and Colbert were absolute gold last night.
September 5, 2008 10:47 AM | Reply | Permalink
So, Greg, are you suggesting hate-filled attacks against Governor Palin and her family, including against her 17-year old daughter are acceptable? Is this the low bar you set for yourself, the Democratic Party, the country, and for your candidate, Obama?
If so, all I've got to say is shame on you.
September 5, 2008 10:36 AM | Reply | Permalink
Sound of crickets.....
September 5, 2008 10:48 AM | Reply | Permalink
And the hissy fit continues...
September 5, 2008 10:49 AM | Reply | Permalink
No, doofus we aren't. We ARE suggesting that the media do it's job and provide the information necesaary to make an informed voting decision. I wish Bristol well. I think she's being pressured into marrying a troglodyte. If she were MY daughter, I'd take a hockey stick to the boy! That said, Bristol's no advertisement for abstinence-based sex ed.
September 5, 2008 10:55 AM | Reply | Permalink
Who attacked the 17 year old?
September 5, 2008 11:07 AM | Reply | Permalink
Matthew, considering your justifiable outrage over the tabloids picking on Bristol, against Obama's wishes, will you join me in campaigning against and condemning McCain for this:
"Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly? Because Janet Reno is her father." John McCain
To help Obama beat this classless fool, you can donate at
https://donate.barackobama.com/page/contribute
September 5, 2008 11:20 AM | Reply | Permalink
Matthew,
The question was about news coverage, not blog or Internet gossip.
And frankly, someone who runs on family values opens herself up to questions when one of her teen daughters ends up pregnant.
September 5, 2008 10:40 AM | Reply | Permalink
Where's Chick Cheney?
September 5, 2008 10:40 AM | Reply | Permalink
He's busy in eastern Europe doing some sabre-rattling at Russia. You know, hoping to stir-up conflict so McCain can overreact declare Cold War II.
September 5, 2008 10:46 AM | Reply | Permalink
Sarah is made for the tabloids unfortunately.
September 5, 2008 10:41 AM | Reply | Permalink
Drudge says that Oprah is refusing to book Palin on her show despite multiple requests.
I can see the media war coming and McCain saying: media does not arbiter this election. Voters do. Palin will talk directly to voters.
Another big gamble, imo
September 5, 2008 10:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
1) Media-types are voters, too.
2) What's to stop the voters at these events from asking questions?
September 5, 2008 10:46 AM | Reply | Permalink
Oprah got burned in the ratings when she was stumping for Obama - I think she's going to stay out of politics for awhile. Besides the McCain Camp knows that she'd turn them down, and wants to make that an issue. Of course since she didn't have Biden on, they really don't have a leg to stand on here.
I've sure the View will have her on, as will Rachel Ray. They'll be powder puffs for her.
September 5, 2008 10:50 AM | Reply | Permalink
Drudge is a grease spot.
Oprah is People magazine on TV. Don't you get it? Oprah isn't dumb enough to give Palin a freaking couch to sit on try desperately to shed the pitbull image she has willingly painted herself with. Sorry. You created your little pit bull, don't expect Oprah of all people to let you off the hook.
And Oprah's not a journalist for goodness sakes. When will she give a real interview?
September 5, 2008 10:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
Do trolls travel in pairs?
September 5, 2008 10:44 AM | Reply | Permalink
Candidates for office always do their best to bypass the media and get their message "directly to the voters", that is the game. Typically this is done by appearing and doing actual interviews, where you then just spew talking points and don't address the tough questions. Palin apparently can't even do that, and that is really scary.
September 5, 2008 10:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
Actually if the coverage of Palin was fair, eighteen of every thirty minutes of news would be devoted to her crimes, scandals and foibles and one minute of each thirty would be about Republicans are carrying a chubbie because she kills lotsa things between popping out unproperly-trained people-puppies. The remaining eleven minutes would of course be advertising by G.E. and oil companies.
September 5, 2008 11:07 AM | Reply | Permalink
These percentages are supposed to be out of 100 percent, right. 100 percent of what?
You can always push a poll result but without any understanding of the knowledge base of the respondents, what does it mean? Can you answer yes it is fair, even if you've never heard of her? Can you answer yes, if you haven't watched TV or read a newspaper in the last week? We don;t know. The pollsters don;t know.
This sort of stuff is just garbage. It makes us stupider.
September 5, 2008 11:26 AM | Reply | Permalink
Greg, I swear I think you do a great job here at TPM. I love this place and I forward many of your pieces to my friends and encourage them to come here and read the great stuff you write. As an avid fan I am going to BEG you to please get a different picture of Palin. I CAN'T stand it. PLEASE, pertty please. Honestly, that picture is worst than the one you all have of Lieberman that you use to upset me with.
I promise I will never ever complain again the server problems, never, if you just get another picture.
Sincerely, Bluesplashy
September 5, 2008 5:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
Greg, I swear I think you do a great job here at TPM. I love this place and I forward many of your pieces to my friends and encourage them to come here and read the great stuff you write. As an avid fan I am going to BEG you to please get a different picture of Palin. I CAN'T stand it. PLEASE, pertty please. Honestly, that picture is worst than the one you all have of Lieberman that you use to upset me with.
I promise I will never ever complain again the server problems, never, if you just get another picture.
Sincerely, Bluesplashy
September 5, 2008 5:06 PM | Reply | Permalink