Frames, Photo Ops, Sound Bites, and Talking Points,

A followup to Max's post.

From a 2008 Pew study:

As was the case in 2004, majorities of the national and local journalists surveyed describe themselves as political moderates; 53% of national journalists and 58% of local journalists say they are moderates. About a third of national journalists (32%), and 23% of local journalists, describe themselves as liberals. Relatively small minorities of national and local journalists call themselves conservatives (8% national, 14% local).

Internet journalists as a group tend to be more liberal than either national or local

journalists. Fewer than half (46%) call themselves moderates, while 39% are self-described liberals and just 9% are conservatives.

Among the population as a whole, 36% call themselves conservatives – more than triple the percentage of national and internet journalists, and more than double the percentage of local journalists. About four-in-ten (39%) characterize their political views as moderate, while 19% are self-described liberals, based on surveys conducted in 2007 by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.

A photo op that went bad:

An important lesson (post-election): be careful what is in the background of the photo op:

A much more successful visual:



Sound bites

The classic campaign soundbite -- Fala!

Another dog story:

Talking points for radio call-in programs: an example from 2008

Talking Points Discipline in Action: