Newspaper Endorsments

[qwerty]

I strongly oppose them. I think that a news outlet should report the news, fair and balanced, and I think that by endorsing a canidate they are favoring one over the other.

This year, my local newspaper, The Press of Atlantic City, which endorsed Vice-President Gore in 2000, did not endorse a canidate, as they did in 1996 and 1984.

Who did your hometown paper endorse?

[MODU]

As we've discussed in two other threads, newspaper endorsements mean no more than used tp at a truck stop. 

[Democratic Hawk]

As we've discussed in two other threads, newspaper endorsements mean no more than used tp at a truck stop. 

Maybe so, but I suppose they are nice to have for any candidate.

Dave

[MODU]

I don't think so.  It just means that the newspaper has sold their editorial soul to a political party, and that isn't what journalism is all about.

Just another reason on my list of why I hate the media.

[Democratic Hawk]

I'll be honest. Editorials seldom have any impact on my opinion.

Dave

[John Dibble]

Should they? Maybe not, depends on the paper I suppose, some are fair and objective and others are just plain biased. Should they be able to? Absolutely without a shadow of a doubt.

[elcorazon]

Chicago Tribune endorsed Bush.
Chicago Sun-Times endorsed Kerry.

I think endorsements in presidential races are anachronistic.  From what I understand the Trib has endorsed the Republican every election since 1872. 

[Bogart]

Arizona Republic endorsed Bush.

I think endorsements are fine, so long as they appear on the editorial page where they belong. I don't really see them as much different from a regular editorial.  Many are not a surprise and none have very much impact.

[Andrew]

I think endorsements are helpful in deciding the down-ballot races.  I like to read both the endorsement editorials and the race profiles in the Detroit Free Press, Detroit News, Port Huron Times Herald, and Lansing State Journal, as well as the profiles in my local weekly.  The profiles help me get hard-to-find information on the candidates and often feature their responses to various questions of interest; the endorsements allow me to see the arguments both for and against the various candidates.  And anytime the News and the Free Press endorse the same candidate, I give them an extra look (the two papers have very different points of view).

I've never been undecided about a Presidential election this late in the game--but if I were, I'd be interested in reading the endorsements of various papers.

[J. J.]

It can, because of the newspaper's history.  For example, the Phila Tribune is the oldest Black owned newspaper in the US.  In Phila, if it endorsed a Republican over a Democrat, or a White candidate over a Black one, as it does at times, it's usually good for a few points. 

It's almost as if a few voters will look and say, "Well, if they say he's okay, he must be okay."  It happened with Ridge in '94 for the governor's race.

[ncjake]

The Miami Herald endorsed Kerry. They are trying to become the paper of record for all of Florida and the Carribean, even if it means pissing off the city they are in. Miami is pretty conservative, it's every city around us that's liberal. One of the few places where the inner city is strongly GOP and the suburbs are Dem strongholds.

[shankbear]

These endorsements are VANITIES.  They do not sway voters.

[rbt48]

Endorsements used to mean much more than they do today.  The print media is less important as a source of news compared to what it was 40 to 50 years ago.  Ironically, I think it was the NYC newspaper strike in 1962-63 that went a long way to pushing television to the more prominent role it plays in how people get their news.  Growing up in that metro area, I remember how the lengthy strike led the TV networks to expand the national news from 15 to 30 minutes and the same for local news as well.  When the strike ended, they never cut back, though the number of NYC daily papers immediately went from 7 to 4, then to 3 a few years later.

The Omaha World-Herald endorsed Bush in a lengthy editorial a week ago Sunday.  Today their statewide poll has Bush leading Kerry 61 to 32%, with an Omaha margin of 57 to 36%.  I guess they are aware of who the bulk of their subscribers are supporting.

[they don't love you like i love you]

Star Tribune endorsed Kerry. Anyone shocked? It's not exactly a secret that the Star Tribune is ultra-hardcore left wing extremist though.

Mankato Free Press also endorsed Kerry, while it's not quite as biased as the STrib, it's still pretty liberal.

[shankbear]

is that the Red Star Tribune?  I saw that on another site.  Thought it was funny.

[Fmr. Gov. NickG]

How big is their editorial board? If it's more than 5, that's not possible - there aren't that many Democrats in Idaho.

The entire Statesman is run by Democrats.

There can't be too many Democrats, because the Statesman has endorsed the Republican presidential candidate in at least the last three elections.

In other irrelevant newpaper endorsement switch news, The Billings Gazette (MT) switched from Bush to Kerry, and the Sioux Falls Argus Leader (SD) switched from Gore to Bush.

Perhaps more importantly, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, which endorsed Bush in 2000, will not endorse a candidate this year.  Here's the story behind it:

    The Cleveland Plain Dealer declined to endorse a WH candidate today after a long road of deliberation saying, "we have decided not to add one more potentially polarizing voice to a poisoned debate." Editor and Publisher revealed last week that the paper wanted to endorse John Kerry, but Publisher Alex Machaskee, who has the final say, preferred Bush. Most of the editorial board on the Plain Dealer favored backing Mr. Kerry, but the publisher, Alex Machaskee, is a Serbian-American and reportedly feared that if elected, Kerry would give a top diplomatic spot to Richard Holbrooke, who the newspaper executive dislikes for his earlier role in the Balkans (Hunt, Wall Street Journal, 10/26). The paper indicated Monday that they had not yet chosen a candidate for endorsement but that a decision would be made "later this week." Since Sunday, the Plain Dealer had been deluged with e-mails that came not just from readers, but from all over the country. When asked whether public opinion had any bearing on the paper's decision process in choosing a candidate, the response was, "Not even a little bit" (Moynihan, Editor and Publisher, 10/25).

[Filuwaúrdjan]

It just means that the newspaper has sold their editorial soul to a political party, and that isn't what journalism is all about.

No... it's exactly what journalism is about. Shouldn't be, but is.
Mind you, U.S Newspapers have nothing on the partisan crap papers over here spout

[Redefeatbush04]

I believe THE TRENTON TIMES endorsed Kerry.

Here are 2 NH newspapers:

Concord Monitor (Kerry)
Union Leader (Bush)