With all the newspaper endorsements out there, CNNs Candy Crowley leads off her interview

[politicaljunkie41910]

with David Axelrod with the question that the Des Moines Iowa gave their endorsement to Romney. And this is relevant WHY Candy? After all the endorsements out there, why would you give such prominance to this Iowa newspaper. Last week when Obama was raking in the endorsements, CNNs folks were discussing why newspaper endorsements don't matter.

[DCBob]

1. Why are you surprised?

[TroyD]

2. David Axelrod should have a good comeback

Like pointing out that The Chicago Tribune endorsed a Democrat for only the 2nd time in its 165-year history.

[iloveObama12]

3. Dammit Candy...I Wish CNN Would Knock It Off With All This Crap!

And U Wonder Why People Don't Their Sorry Assses

[imgbitepolitic]

4. Lets not

forgot she also fact checked R and made him look like a fool.

[budkin]

6. This

[TroyD]

8. Yes she was fairer in the debate than I thought she would be

I give her credit for that.

[politicaljunkie41910]

9. You're right, I'll give her a pass today. Fact Checking Romney in real time was a game changer.

It made him look like the fool he has turned out to be.

[helpisontheway]

5. How did he respond? nt

[morningfog]

7. The media is only interested in ratings. Period.

To gin up ratings, they report on controversies and horse races.

[ladjf]

11. I don't believe that "The media is ONLY interested in ratings. Period". I believe that the

media ownership has far deeper and more nefarious motivations that "ratings". I believe that they are directly and intimately involved in determining the political outcomes that ultimately
result in more power and more money.

If my opinion is correct, the oft repeated idea that "ratings are their motive" is leading people to believe that the media is merely going trying to make a profit by playing the campaigns as "horse races".

[morningfog]

15. If Obama was trailing, they would still be trying to sell a horse race.

It is about ratings and ad revenue.

[ladjf]

17. Personally, I would prefer your opinion on this matter to my own. If you are correct, then it's

just a matter of direct profits. If my theory were to be correct, it would mean that the media
is under the control of entities that have no interest in fair democratic processes.

[Buddaman]

10. Des Moines folks prob. don't appreciate that endorsement.......nt

[IowaGuy]

14. We've seen this kind of crap before....

The DMR has endorsed Steve King before. This year they endorsed Christie
Vilsack and Braley, yet turn around and endorse Romney. In what universe could you possibly be in that makes any kind of philosophical sense? The DMR used to be a proud independent progressive paper. Now they just throw false equivalences around and call that fair and independent. There is no longer any serious intellectual analysis done by their board.

[WI_DEM]

12. What did Axelrod say?

[OldDem2012]

13. Just like I stated after the debate CC moderated, one "atta-boy" doesn't make up....

...for a lifetime of "aw-shits".

And please, I don't want to be lectured about how well she performed in the one debate she moderated.

[melody]

16. Saw this in two other places, too

Every major newspaper everywhere backs Obama, but the MSM touts this one endorsement.

[onenote]

18. Because its more newsworthy than most other endorsements?

Its an endorsement by the biggest paper in a key swing state and its a paper that endorsed President Obama in 2008 and has a long history of endorsing Democrats. If there is a comparable example of an endorsement for Obama, I can't think of it. The NY Times and Washington Post endorsements are important because those are big national papers, but both of those papers endorsed President Obama in 2008 which makes their endorsements less of a news story (still a news story, just not as much as one involving a swing state and a paper shifting its endorsement). The endorsement of President Obama by the Chicago Tribune isn't big news not only because Illinois is a safe state, but because the Trib endorsed Obama in 2008 as well. The endorsement of the Utah paper -- also not a swing state and thus not as significant as a news story.

Now, if the Richmond Times Dispatch had endorsed Obama instead of Romney -- and boy do I wish that had happened, -- it would be even bigger news, since it is a major paper in a swing state and it endorsed McCain in 2008. Unfortunately, that didn't happen, so the biggest news in the endorsement game this week was the DMR. It sucks, but its the way it is.