Melanie SillThis weekend, @nytimes made it clear: They're doubling down on the horse race in #2024 election #journalism. A better way than the Biden-vs.-Trump poll preferences as news (I'm declining to link) would have been to use the polls to reflect what people are concerned about and report what #Biden and #Trump have done/ would do to address issues: inform people's choices, instead of predicting. The Times' political coverage is locked in and impervious to criticism or reflection, but should be better.
@nytimes A great example of the problem in this #NewYorkTimes coverage: The economy story. Context: No president controls the economy, but they get credit or blame. Reporting for better #journalism: How did the economy perform under Trump as well as Biden. Major trends in each admin, and major initiatives from each #POTUS. What are the two men proposing economically for next steps? https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/06/business/dealbook/biden-economy-trump-2024.html?unlocked_article_code=1.8Uw.Br0O.WmFKZ1e6DlGt&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
JJ Peterson@melaniesill @nytimes NYT every day refuses to acknowledge any Biden achievement and then crows about how successful they were. The Free Press is murdering democracy as we watch.
claudiakincaid@melaniesill @nytimes it's so stressful that I am pulling away from reading the news. seems like the wrong trajectory for a newspaper to inspire.
Waka/Joewaka@melaniesill @nytimes Thank you! That is a better perspective than the framing that was put around that polling data.
Adam Richter@melaniesill @nytimes
I 1000% agree with you. On the flip side, the headline did wonders for sending my stress/blood pressure/anxiety through the goddamn roof.
I 1000% agree with you. On the flip side, the headline did wonders for sending my stress/blood pressure/anxiety through the goddamn roof.
DrewMontagna@melaniesill @nytimes Don’t let this get you all flustered and anxious. 12 months until the election. This is clickbait. Trends are more important and accurate than polls. Democrats have been winning in the majority of state and local elections since Trump won in ‘16. Furthermore, they’re flipping districts that voted heavily for TFG by large margins.
@DrewMontagna @nytimes I'm not focused on the prediction itself, more on the need for better election #journalism - and since both of these men have track records as #POTUS, it's possible to document how they have and would address issues that move people's votes.
Ivey Janette McClelland@melaniesill @nytimes They want Trump back.
Scott, present & accounted for@melaniesill @nytimes People should stop giving the NYT their money.
Eric McCorkleThe theory that NYT has bet long-term on fascism winning, and is positioning themselves to be state media continues to be an effective predictive model for their behavior.
They have consistently and diligently worked to normalize Trumpism and far-right positions.
Darren du Nord@melaniesill @nytimes Polls are worthless this far out. But 100% agree that we need #REPORTING on ISSUES and the consequences of placing authoritarian #criminals in charge.
Zhi Zhu 🕸️"Coverage that serves the community well focuses on what’s important not to politicians but to the people... It shows not only who could win but what it would mean.
High-value #election coverage revolves around families, individuals and every affected resident. It weighs their aspirations against campaign rhetoric & possible election outcomes...
Low-value election coverage clings to the question of who’s going to win."
https://coloradonewsline.com/2023/10/12/were-demoting-horse-race-election-coverage-heres-why/
On the danger of covering politics like a horse race:
“A horse race confers an equivalence upon all candidates. The only detail that matters is who is going to win — not all that might be lost.
To view America through that lens today is an exercise in the absurd, a practice stuck in the insular logic of the past.”
~Dan Rather and Elliot Kirschner
https://steady.substack.com/p/the-danger-of-horse-race-politics
#Journalism #Journalists #Press #Media #Politics #USPol #USA #News #NoPaywall
“Not the odds, but the stakes.
That's my shorthand for the organizing principle we most need among journalists covering the 2024 campaign.
Not who has what chances of winning, but the consequences for Americans and their democracy. What is likely to happen if... Again and again.
Not the odds, but the stakes.”
~@jayrosen_nyu
https://mastodon.social/@jayrosen_nyu/110006646858711303
#NotTheOddsButTheStakes
#Politics #USPol #USPolitics #Election #Elections
#Journalism #Journalists #Press #Media #News #USA
@ZhiZhu They missed the easy step — after identifying what was on the minds of those polled, to then do what NYT leaders claim is their aim, hold politicians and political parties accountable for how they address issues. Easy, given Biden and Trump track records and public positions, and NYT resources. Times #journalists see themselves as calling the game for spectators instead of shining the light for voters as stakeholders and participants
I really like the last part of your statement & will quote it.
“Times #journalists see themselves as calling the game for spectators instead of shining the light for voters as stakeholders and participants”
I might modify it slightly to read:
Too many " #journalists see themselves as calling the game for spectators instead of shining the light for voters as stakeholders and participants”
~@melaniesill
https://newsie.social/@melaniesill@mastodon.social/111364228136637628
Melanie Sill (@[email protected])
@[email protected] They missed the easy step — after identifying what was on the minds of those polled, to then do what NYT leaders claim is their aim, hold politicians and political parties accountable for how they address issues. Easy, given Biden and Trump track records and public positions, and NYT resources. Times #journalists see themselves as calling the game for spectators instead of shining the light for voters as stakeholders and participants
Jude@melaniesill @ZhiZhu I've given up reading the NYTs news "coverage". The investigative pieces and their art & culture coverage is still relevant, or else I'd be out of there. #wapo is no better. Mastodon is where I get the news. #nyt #mastodon
AskPippa🇨🇦@melaniesill @nytimes If they get lots of letters to the editors asking for better details, they'll re-evaluate coverage.
climate voter/radical oldie@melaniesill @nytimes Good idea but of course the cultist s won't be reading the NYT.