The next 30 days could be a lot of fun watching the traditional media handle the Dean-vs.-the-world secnario, especially if the "moderate left" is coming together to try and stop Howard from getting the nomination. That's because while the press is liberal in general, there are different shades of it, ranging from those who see the same Wile E. Coyote-off-the-cliff future for the Democrats that Saletan does, and those whose passionate hated for Bush makes them just the type of people who have given Dean his teflon coating so far (a Paul Krugman in print or a Katie Couric on TV are two examples of the latter).

How many assignment editors, braodcasters and reporters there are in one group and how many there are in the other may decide what type of press Dean and his rivals receive between now and the Iowa and New Hampshire votes. And if the general trend drifts towards Saletan's viewpoint, look for the Dean folks to really start compalining about the conservative media bias.

Ideology aside, the press also despises incompetence, which is why many candidates go nowhere, and why some Presidents find themselves hated when they feel the press should be allied with them (Johnson, Carter, Clinton to a small degree). This is one reason why Bob Graham, a candidate on paper who looked so good (from FL, on the Intel. committee, won 5 big elections, etc.) died an early death. It is why Teddy could never get past the Roger Mudd interview in 1980. And it is why Bush (and to a degree, Reagan) got pretty fair coverage while they were campaigning. They ran tight ships and the media knew it.

Where Dean stands with Rather, Jennings, and Brokaw I have no idea. If he fumbles around, he will lose them and the rest of the elite media. But we do know that the NYT would endorse Kucinich before it would endorse Bush.

While I agree with much of this analysis, I do not understand the rationale for asserting that McCain would have won the general election more easily than Bush did. McCain's candidacy was nothing more than vainglorious exercise, an illusion driven by the media; it had no organization and zero grass-roots support. Apart from the always quirky new Hampshire primary, the only early states that McCain was able to win were Arizona (his home state) and Michigan (fueled by a deliberate attempt by Democrats to cross party lines and vote to damage George Bush, whom they knew to be a stronger candidate in the general election). If McCain had been the Republican nominee, many voters such as myself would have preferred to stay home. In my mind, McCain is a classic RINO, as evideced by his life's achievement, the campaign-finance reform bill. Further, I cannot imagine any other Republican apart from a Southerner such as Bush being able to win states like Arkansas and Tennessee against the home sons, Gore and Clinton.

Kid glove treatment from the press, the GOP would have voted for him anyway and enough Democrats thought well enough of him to give him some crossover appeal where Bush had none.

The quoted passage from 'Dutch' is pure poetry. If only Morris could have overcome his dislike of Reagan, 'Dutch' could have been one of the great biographies.

jim hanlen,

What effect would you expect a NYT endorsement to have for anyone? IMO the NYT/WaPo axis has lost its ability to have any substantial impact whatsoever. I would acknowledge that in every election there are a few million voters who are becoming serious concerning politics for the first time in their lives but I would note that this will be the first Presidential election in history to have the internet as a viable alternative to newsparers with regard to the dissemination of opinion. In fact, one of the factors that may work against Dean with regard to print journalism is Trippi's focus on the internet. It is hard to imagine print people being tremendously excited about a campaign focused on using an alternative medium in getting its message out.

I agree with you totally in regard to journalist's disdain for ineffective campaign management. Trippi's gloss is already gone and I would expect him to be feeling like one of Glen Reynold's puppies before the end of next month. Hubris has such charming rewards.

I have to second the "McCain wouldn't more easily" meme. As was pointed out the win in Michigan was largely due to John Conyers ginning up the Democratic Machine to come out in favor of McCain, partly because it would weaken the GOP field, and partly because it would embarass the GOP governor at the time, Engler, with whom Conyers already had a bitter feud on other issues. I suspect much of McCain's "bipartisan support" both in the press and with Democrats, would have evaporated when McCain's opponent was Gore Jr. rather than "W", witness how McCain's getting a LOT less positive ink from mainstream media for backing GW on the war than he did for opposing him on CFR.