Why are CNN correspondent Kyung Lah and photojournalist Ronnie McCray standing on a hotel balcony facing an indoor pool far from the campaign rally they wanted to cover? Here, let Lah explain…
“In a sign of how isolated our sources of information have become,” Lah wrote, “midterm campaigns, many of them Republican, are largely excluding local newspapers, local TV stations and national reporters. In Pennsylvania, we spoke with leading gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano’s campaign because we were planning to attend a rally in Uniontown, Pa. The rally was advertised as free and open to the public, with registration The campaign directed us to register, saying that there was no separate media check-in, but on our arrival, we were told that media would not be allowed.”
That’s why Lah and McCray booked a hotel room with a view of the rally. Mastriano’s campaign was not happy when they saw the crew perched on the balcony: “The campaign sent two security guards who threatened to kick us out of the room,” Lah wrote. “But since the hotel allowed us to stay, we had the right to watch a big event that everyone in the hotel could see.”
“This behavior is integral to how the Mastriano campaign has excluded local reporters,” he added. This recent Philadelphia Inquirer article said the campaign printed photos of journalists to prevent entry to an event.
Lah reported on the rally, and Mastriano’s aversion to independent media,
on Monday “The protagonist with Jake Tapper”. Later, Tapper’s guest, Maria Cardona, complimented Lah on his creativity and
saying “The fact that the Mastriano campaign didn’t want the press to do it should be a red flag and a huge wake-up call for all Pennsylvanians.”
But Mastriano’s talking points at the rally that criticized the media received thunderous applause from his supporters. That is the crux of the matter…
dodging debates
Last week, Sudhin Thanawala of The AP wrote on an issue related to the Republican primary season: “Many candidates for important offices, often Republicans, are abandoning the traditional tradition of debating their rivals before Election Day. “. For example, Herschel Walker, the leading Republican contender for a Georgia Senate seat, skipped two debates. Naturally, the Walker campaign did not grant The AP’s request for an interview on the matter.
>> “Debates? Avoid them. Sitting with reporters and being grilled about politics? Nope. Look, Herschel Walker doesn’t make campaign stops as much as he makes appearances, talks to fans and poses for photos,” Amanda Carpenter. she wrote for El Baluarte…
>> Lah adds: “The problem is that skipping the midterm debate and talking only to the primary voters who make up the core of the party hurts democracy, and possibly these very campaigns, in the long run. US Senate runoff and candidate David Perdue only spoke to the right-wing press and ultimately lost his seat It also limits what reporters can cover – we don’t want to cover just one game, that’s not helpful or healthy in our polarized politics…”
>> Competing against the media is a common practice in Republican primaries, but other practices also deserve scrutiny. For example, President Biden has given very few interviews this year, which we have repeatedly pointed out…
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