2008 Primaries, Branding Politix, Messaging, Speeches, Views on News • April 18th, 2008

The honeymoon is over

by Chris Lato

Wednesday night’s debate on ABC proved what many knew was coming: the press is falling out of love with Barack Obama.

As Obama’s front-runner status inches closer to certainty that he will be the Democratic nominee, the worm has turned.

There are questions (legitimate, as they speak to his character and judgement) about Obama’s ties to the radical Weather Underground. There are questions about whether Obama is the 2008 wimp candidate (see: John Kerry 2004, Michael Dukakis 1988). There are questions about whether Obama is safe speaking in public without a TelePrompter.

Obama can, and will, continue to say that these issues are examples of the sorry state of the media, that our discussion should focus on issues, not (in his view) trivial matters, etc. However, that will only carry him so far.

Better Obama tackle these ‘trivial’ questions head-on, address the lingering issues and then get back to what he wants to talk about. At some point, his protests begin to sound like stonewalling, and the press will step up and define him, rather than the other way around.

Until recently, Obama has been admittedly masterful at writing his own script in this campaign. But in such a closely scrutinized race, that cannot last and all the high-mindedness in the world won’t keep the wolves at bay forever. Take them on, answer with clarity and forcefulness in a setting that gets the proper coverage, and then move on. Once that is done, Obama is well within his rights to say he has answered the questions and has other things to talk about. Until then, he can’t help but look like a guy who has something to hide.

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