Is the media deliberately suppressing Biden's accomplishments and promoting "Doom and Gloom"?

[lees1975]

https://signalpress.blogspot.com/2023/11/is-media-suppression-of-biden.html

All day Tuesday, I had to avoid the temptation to click on news sites just to see if anyone had any predictions, news, or insights as to how key elections were going in the states that got a lot of publicity. American politics is quite predictable, and in spite of polling data that is not very consistent, and reflects an "all over the place" kind of feeling, at least until election day, and accountability, draws close. After the weekend news about the poll results that came out, I was anxious about what might transpire in the elections that Democrats were pointing to as indicators of where things are headed in 2024, and not wanting to engage with Republicans who would be gloating over wins.

But whatever anxiety I might have had, it was relieved very quickly by Tuesday's election results.

Long before bedtime, it became apparent that the news about the weekend polls would be covered up and largely discredited by some whopping Democratic party election wins. Pollsters, and the news media, had cast a shadow of doubt over this off-year election, at least as far as Democrats are concerned, and made an effort to associate what they are claiming is the Biden Administration's unpopularity with potential Republican victories in key elections. In spite of their attempts, nothing resembling the gloom and doom they tried to spread over the weekend showed up in those election results. In Kentucky and Ohio, red states in the last several elections, Democrats won big. I was concerned, again mainly from news reporting, that Virginia might not deliver. And I wasn't expecting much from Mississippi, where we got better news than one might think in a Democratic candidate's loss. But by the time Lawrence O'Donnell came on at 9, Virginia was in the bag and Mississippi, well it's Mississippi, but it turned out much better for Democrats than it has in a long time, proving that there's potential, even there.

So this gloom and doom reporting, harping about Biden's age, coming up with unbelievable polling data and then promoting that while ignoring anything that doesn't fit that narrative (including ignoring a marketing poll in Arizona that has Biden with a ten point lead there) looks like a deliberate attempt to undermine his candidacy.

[yardwork]

1. Yes.

[Magoo48]

37. That must be a rhetorical question.

[MOMFUDSKI]

2. The media is Corporate America and

rethugs give them huge tax breaks and hold wages down. It is ALWAYS about $$$

[Walleye]

3. I think the slick talking heads have decided that supporting Biden is not hip or cool

Especially when it’s so much easier just to make another joke about his age

[RAB910]

4. The media is extremely pro-GOP

they normalize Trump's crimes and treason

They ignore the GOP's love of fascism

they never report the accomplishments of Democrats

[brooklynite]

5. No. They're not.

If they are trying to do that, they're doing a lousy job. As a rule, if your goal is to promote candidate A, hiring people who criticize or report negative news about candidate A is a strange way to proceed.

[lees1975]

11. From the OP

"It's pretty clear that some media outlets were preparing to tie any Democratic failures directly to Biden. After the fact, there are few of them who are tying Tuesday's success to Biden. They don't like him and they're not cutting him any slack."

If those elections had gone the other way, blaming it all on Biden would have been the theme. They didn't. In fact, these were pretty solid victories for Democrats, and there are others, especially the one in Wisconsin last summer, that have not even been close. As it is, I have only heard MSNBC making any connection between Republicans getting beaten into the ground on Tuesday, and Biden being the leader of the party to which they belonged. It's happened twice now in Ohio in a matter of months.

Where do you think that is going, to a loss in 2024 on the issues?

[Demsrule86]

33. Yes. They weigh polls in ways that conform to their opinions and also at times

to those who paid for the polls' opinions...Polls are not worth a damn these days...when you look at polls and there is 'weighting' and at the end a 'last look' if it doesn't look right IE conform to what the pollster thinks or the person who paid for the poll thinks then 'fix it some more'. The result is useless.

[ananda]

6. Whatever helps their rightwing owners.

nt

[GreenWave]

7. Yeppers.

And once the population is loaded up with GOP BS, they poll them.

[ThreeNoSeep]

8. Big corporate media

Big Corporate media is only about eyeballs looking at ads, and the way to do that is to evoke a strong emotion from the viewer so they stick around across the the commercial break.

[onecaliberal]

9. Yes. The fascist are desperate.

[sakabatou]

10. Wouldn't be the first time

[lame54]

12. Instead of reporting what he does they...

Complain the administration is doing a bad job getting their message out

[Mad_Machine76]

13. It would be hard to prove

But it sure feels like it somedays. I just think they're bored and they want Trump back because at least he was exciting. Covering the first American Dictator would probably be exhilarating for them, at least until he starts jailing them en masse.

[Boomerproud]

22. Are they that stupid to think they won't be affected?

[Mad_Machine76]

34. Maybe........

[mcar]

14. Yes

[DestinyIsles]

15. Yes it's a business model

bad news gets more views and clicks than good news. I don't think its a conspiracy against Democrats. Thankfully most voters see through it.

[ificandream]

16. No they're not.

Real journalism isn't like Fox that plays cheerleader to its side and ravages its opponents (which isn't how real journalism acts anyway). Real journalism reports both the good and the bad. There are reports of Biden's accomplishments often. It's just that they're not playing cheerleader. Real journalism isn't whitewashing the news like Fox and the right-wing repeating media is.

[lees1975]

20. Compare the amount of screen time given to politics that Trump gets as opposed to what Biden gets.

I'd bet that it's 3 to 1 in Trump's favor. That's not reporting Biden's accomplishments, that's focusing on the former President's perspective, whatever it is on whatever day it is.

That's not real journalism.

I'd be happy if they just reported Biden's accomplishments, giving him the same amount of time. I'm not looking for journalistic cheerleading. In this case, they 've elevated a few polls that show Biden behind and left out half a dozen that are the other way. And while they were ready to pounce on Biden and lay blame on him if Republicans had won anything on Tuesday remotely indicating they made some gains, other than MSNBC, they've been silent on the fact that Biden is the party leader and this is part of his platform.

That's not real journalism, that's propaganda.

[republianmushroom]

17. Yup

[totodeinhere]

18. Doom and gloom sells and generates ratings and profits.

Accomplishments by the incumbent president do not. That's why I am glad for DU where I can get the real scoop.

[lindysalsagal]

19. Of course. How else will they sell cars and boner pills?

All media are just for profit. Never forget that.

[lees1975]

21. Pacifica Radio

https://pacificanetwork.org/

On in my office all day every day.

[librechik]

23. Sure as hell looks like it. For example they were all talking about the Bad Poll

tsk tsk all effin day and all night.

NO ONE not even Maddow mentioned how GROSSLY oversampled that poll was for GOP. There was a post right here in GD about it a few days ago. Days later still no mention of the oversampling, just bad poll bad poll. Whatcha gonna do?

Ack, quit panicking people over just another GOP trick!

[librechik]

24. Sure as hell looks like it. They mention the Bad Poll, but not the oversampling of GOP

tsk tsk all effin day and all night.

NO ONE not even Maddow mentioned how GROSSLY oversampled that poll was for GOP. There was a post right here in GD about it a few days ago. Days later still no mention of the oversampling, just bad poll bad poll. Whatcha gonna do?

Ack, quit panicking people over just another GOP trick!

[Lanius]

25. "Doom and Gloom" sells, and the US news media are private businesses looking to make $$$

[rso]

26. Biden

Yes, and as Biden stated today, the media focus only on the two polls unfavorable to him, while ignoring the other 8 favorable polls.

[marble falls]

27. Yes. And it sells papers/views and Ad revenue.

[spanone]

28. Leslie Moonves on Donald Trump....

“It May Not Be Good for America, but It’s Damn Good for CBS”

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/leslie-moonves-donald-trump-may-871464/

[dchill]

29. They're just concerned.

[Funtatlaguy]

30. Yes.

[cbabe]

31. Also fsn, bbc, cbc all relying on 'bad' poll news. Caution ahead.

[NewHendoLib]

32. Of course. Whatever keeps people tuned in. It's entertainment!

[BadgerMom]

35. This clearly can be seen as fodder for 2024 election denialism.

Not enough media has pushed back. Trump’s claim of winning in 2020 is a lie and proven, at that. Who stands up and says that? Who responds to MAGA spokespeople’s lies with facts in interviews. Notably, Kristen Welker didn’t. It’s very difficult to look at the past three years and conclude that US media is married to fact and not propaganda.

[droidamus2]

36. How about

They always want every presidential election to be a horse race. Yes mostly because it gets more people tuning in and hey can sell more and pricier advertising space. If the polls were accurate, these days not a given, and they showed one candidate 25 points ahead they would still find a way to say that isn't necessarily so and the odds for opposition are looking up. They are like the announcers for a football game they may seem to favor one team over the other but in the end they want to keep the fans of both sides watching.

[ExWhoDoesntCare]

38. Yes

Because that's what they're paid to do. Do you really think their 1% bosses want Biden to remain in the White House. Come on.

This has been another edition of 'Simple Answers to Simple Questions.'

[inthewind21]

39. No

they are reporting what they think will get people knickers in a twist, be re-posted, widely shared and clicked all over the place and give them more revenue.

[DFW]

40. In a word........

Yes, they are. The same way they gave Trump flattering 24/7 coverage in 2016, this is the same in reverse. It is coordinated, and it is deliberate. More and more, the US press is marching to orders given and to instructions received. It is especially obvious if you grew up in an era of true journalism and with one of its major personalities at the dinner table every night. I sometimes spent my spare time helping hmy dad out at his office at 14th and F (National Press Building) in DC, and he had Senators and Congressmen coming out to our house on weekends for off the record brainstorming sessions.

My father was a Washington print journalist of some renown, recipient of the Thomas L. Stokes award and a past president of the Gridiron Club. I grew up with true journalism, and this ain't it.

[edisdead]

41. Yes

Next question.

[tenderfoot]

42. The media needs to prop up the Potemkin Right Wing movement that has a strangle hold on the Nation

eom

[Yavin4]

43. No primary campaign money will be spent on TV ads.

Next winter/spring, there won't be any primary campaign money spent on ads. The Republican primaries are dead air. No one is watching them. After South Carolina, no other candidates will even be in the race. Big Media is poised to lose a ton of campaign ad buy money in an presidential election year. This is unprecedented.

They're trying to agitate a Dem primary challenger who would have to spend mountains of money.