Jul
31
Manipulate The Media Like The Clintons
July 31, 2007 | |
No one does a better job of media manipulation than Bill and Hilary Clinton. What has been happening in the past few days - I believe - is an example of their extraordinary media spinning and influencing skills. Let’s review the events and see if you agree with my conclusions.
First, there is “Cleavagegate.” Polls show that Hilary Clinton is not seen as feminine or likeable. So, she shows up in Congress wearing a slightly revealing dress.
Now, I don’t know if Team Clinton alerted the media somehow to the fact she was wearing the plunging neckline, but I have my suspicions. So, the media talks up her new-found femininity. Hilary gets that advantage and also gets to complain that she should be covered for her ideas, not her cleavage. Then, she sends out a letter using the cleavage issue as a means to raise money. Bam - a three-fer.
Next, it’s “Lettergate.” Somehow (again, my guess is Team Clinton pulled the trigger) the press found out about letters Hilary and a friend wrote to each other when they were in their teens. They portrayed Hilary in a very sympathetic light. Little news value, but a great way to boost the old likeability quotient.
Finally, and most incredibly, there’s a turnaround in the media on Iraq. If you haven’t seen these stories yet, at least read this one from the New York Times written by two analysts from the liberal Brookings Institute that says the surge is working.
Why is this happening? I believe that it is tied to the Clintons, as well as to the fact that the surge does appear to be gaining traction. Hilary voted to send the troops to Iraq and has never recanted on that vote. This is a fact that Obama has hammered her on at every turn. Now, she has thrown red meat to the faithful, claiming that Bush lied, but she has stood by her vote, casting her in stark relief to the other Democrat presidential candidates. A recent New York Times poll shows that more voters now believe that the initial decision to go into Iraq was the right thing to do, even though they are not happy with how things have progressed since then.
Average Americans seem to think Democrats have gone off the deep end with their politicization of the war and here is Hilary - moving toward the center - to offer voters a viable, electable Democrat candidate. The media miss the Clinton days, so they keep spinning to Team Clinton’s tune.
I rest my case.
