PLSC 236 -- 2012 Presidential Campaign and the News Media

(Important Note: Syllabus Subject to Revision)

Spring 2014
Instructor: Walter Shapiro
Email: walter.shapiro@yale.edu
Office Hours: Mondays 1-3 pm. Rosenkrantz Hall, Room 330.
Taking advantage of insights gained from the 2012 presidential campaign and the torrent
of books (both academic and popular) published in its wake, this seminar will examine
the intersection of two institutions in the midst of major transformations the political
campaign industry and the news business.
The orthodoxies of how presidential campaigns are waged and how the press covers them
sometimes shift with stunning suddenness. The role of television and debates in electing
John Kennedy in 1960 is an obvious example; the rise of presidential primaries in 1972
and 1976 is another. While a definitive judgment is still premature, it seems likely that
2012 was another seismic-shift campaign. A major reason was the sophistication of both
major-party presidential campaigns (and not just Barack Obamas) in the harnessing of
social media. Other important transformational factors included the emergence of Super
PACs to such an extent that they overshadowed the political parties; the near doubling of
spending by the campaigns themselves (not counting Super PACs) as both presidential
nominees spurned federal money; and the instantaneous political dialogue fostered by
Twitter among campaign reporters and operatives.
At the same time, the news business has been in the midst of a wrenching transformation
unparalleled since the dawn of the TV age. Newspapers, which once were the source of
most serious political coverage, are in free fall because of the collapse of the advertisingbased economic model. The major new entrants in the media landscape either have a
partisan tilt (Huffington Post) or often feed on short-attention-span controversy (Politico
and BuzzFeed). Still, the 2012 campaign marked the moment when digital news via the
Internet and smart phones began to displace both TV and print as the primary sources of
political information.
With the luxury of hindsight, this seminar will analyze a series of questions central to our
understanding of presidential politics: Can a diminished political press corps effectively
cover the complexities of a presidential race in which so much is subterranean from
Facebook strategies to the identities of Super PAC donors to the micro-targeting of
voters? How have political tactics changed in response to the erosion of the gatekeeper
powers of traditional media organizations? Are most voters well served by the
hyperactive emphasis by both campaigns and the media on winning short-duration news
cycles? Has the breakdown of media authority allowed scurrilous political narratives to
flourish? And, did the news media provide voters with a realistic picture of how President
Obama would govern from the Oval Office in his second term? And was the media
portrayal of Mitt Romney, for the most part, fair and accurate?

The seminar will be divided into four parts. During the first part, we will review
presidential campaign coverage during the last four decades of the twentieth century the
golden age of The Making of the President 1960 and The Boys on the Bus and discuss
whether voters benefited from intimate journalistic portraits of the White House
contenders. The second part will center on the beleaguered economic structure of the
news business in the 21st century. A close examination of media coverage of the 2008 and
2012 presidential races will be at the heart of the third part with an emphasis on how the
campaigns have adapted to the changed news landscape. The final portion of the course
will discuss whether 2012 was a watershed election in terms of news media coverage and
the ways in which presidential campaigns communicate with voters. The goal will be to
develop theories about the emerging dynamic between the media and political campaigns
for next decade or two.
Readings: We will read significant parts of nine books as well as foundation studies,
journalistic self-criticism and emblematic examples of 2012 campaign coverage. Roughly
150-200 pages per week will be assigned. (Since much of the reading is journalistic
rather than academic, I am certain that the weekly reading will not be a burden).
The principal books used in this course will be:
The Making of the President 1960 by Theodore White
The Selling of the President 1968 by Joe McGinniss
The Boys on the Bus by Timothy Crouse
What It Takes by Richard Ben Cramer
One-Car Caravan by Walter Shapiro
The Candidate by Samuel Popkin
The Victory Lab: The Secret Science of Winning Campaigns by Sasha Issenberg
The Gamble by John Sides and Lynn Vavreck
Collision 2012 by Dan Balz
*Campaign for President: The Managers Look at 2012 by the Institute of Politics at
Harvard
(Note: With the exception of the *Campaign Managers Look at 2012 all these books have
been ordered for the Yale Bookstore. Most of them are also available in ebook form).
There will also be other readings, which are available for no cost online.
Guest Lecturers: There will be about four guest lecturers (both campaign reporters and
political insiders). But the schedule for speakers is still to be determined because of the
inevitable difficulties in nailing down precise dates. As a result, there may be some
scheduling adjustments in the order of topics and readings during the second half of the
semester. The reason is to better coordinate discussion topics with the schedules of guest
speakers. Students should also be aware that some speakers may request that their
comments be off-the-record which means exactly that no articles, no tweets, no
Facebook posts.

Grading and Requirements: Since this is a once-a-week seminar, students will be

expected to attend every class, unless he or she offers a particularly persuasive excuse to
miss a single session. Class participation will account for 20 percent of the grade.
By noon on the day of each seminar, please email me a few sentences about themes that
intrigued you in that weeks readings. The point of this small exercise is to help me shape
the discussion for the upcoming seminar. These will not be graded, but they will also be
useless if you send them in 10 minutes before the start of class.
Mid-term paper (30 percent of grade): This paper, which should run between 1000-1500
words, will be built around your assessment of whether the 20th Century style of
presidential campaign coverage (much more access to the candidates and their top
advisers) enhanced voters understanding of the electoral stakes or whether it primarily
benefited the reporters themselves. More specific instructions about this paper will be
given in class and during consultations during office hours. Due date: March 24.
Final paper (50 percent of grade): The topic for this paper, which should run between
3000-5000 words, is to take a major aspect of media coverage of the 2012 campaign and
analyze whether the press corps was manipulated by the campaigns or whether reporters
adapted well to the new realities of politics. Part of this paper will be to develop theories
about the future of the dynamic between the media and the campaigns they cover. Once
again, more specific instructions for this paper will be given in class and during office
hours. Due date: April 30.
Ethics: Journalists are appalled by plagiarism and other ethical breeches relating to
passing off someone elses work (a paper, a paragraph or even a sentence) as your own.
Yale University obviously feels the same way. So consider this a double warning. Please
familiarize yourself with the Universitys policy on cheating, plagiarism, and
documentation. Any cases of suspected plagiarism will be reported directly to the
appropriate dean, and documented plagiarism will result in a complete loss of credit on
the assignment. If you have any specific questions about the guidelines in this area,
please consult with me in person or via email before you submit your paper.
Office Hours: Monday from 1:00-3:00 pm. Room 330 (Rosenkrantz). Office hours will
also be held on Friday, January 17, from 1:00-3:00. There will be expanded office hours
or telephone conversations (917-679-5060), by pre-arrangement, especially in the weeks
before papers are due.
Course Schedule:
Part One: The Way We Were, Campaign Coverage from 1960-2004
January 13: Course Overview for Shoppers

Theme: Calling upon my experience chronicling the past nine presidential campaigns, I
will provide an overview of the changing dynamic in media coverage of politics.
Discussion will focus on issues raised by the 2012 campaign.
January 17: Where It All Began Teddy Whites Enduring Influence
Theme: To understand 21st century political coverage, it is important to read and savor the
most influential book ever written on presidential politics. Theodore Whites coverage of
the 1960 Kennedy campaign set the standard for political journalism for the next half
century. Not only is it a portrait of Americas first true television campaign, but it also
established the Cult of the Political Operative, in which the candidates sometimes fade
into the woodwork as the machinations of aides take central stage. The book is both
eerily contemporary while offering a glimpse of a bygone era before presidential
candidates were selected by primaries.
Reading: This will be lighter than otherwise because of the truncated break between class
sessions. The Making of the President 1960. Pages 3-63 and Pages 85-125. (Since this is
an old book, you may be reading an edition with different pagination. I am assigning
Chapters One, Two and Four).
January 27: How Politics Adopted to a Changing Media Environment (1960-68)
Theme: As political reporters are now struggling with campaigns conducted through the
social media, it is instructive to look at how political adapted to the last transformational
jolt to old-time politics the primacy of television advertising. That is why we will look
at both the 1960 Kennedy-Nixon debates (White) as well as the supposed cynicism of
The Selling of the President 1968. It is dispiriting to realize that the Richard Nixon
campaign (1968) now represents the good old days. And we will use his campaign to
underscore the inherent tension between campaign spin and the medias quest to penetrate
the political bubble wrap.
Readings: The Making of the President 1960, Pages 164-196 and 306-333. (Chapters Six
and Eleven). The Selling of the President 1968. Pages 9-82, 97-111 and 133-141.
(Chapters One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Eight and Twelve).
February 3: Campaign Coverage When Newspapers Were King
Theme: There is no better introduction to the mores and cultural norms of political
journalism than Timothy Crouses classic account of the reporters covering the 1972
George McGovern campaign. It also captures the high-water mark of the supremacy of
print over television.
Reading: The Boys on the Bus. Pages 3-47, 68-99, 129-138 and 303-371. Or Chapters
One, Two, Four, Six, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen and Seventeen. (My dirty little secret: I
hope you are tempted to read the rest of the book simply because it is great fun beyond
being assigned reading).

Jack Germond, one of the more colorful figures in The Boys on the Bus and a highly
respected political reporter, died last August. I have included several obituaries and
appreciations to convey what he represented in 20th century journalism:
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2013/12/jack-germond-obituary101424.html#.Us88-GRDuwA
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/jack-germond-syndicated-columnistand-tv-commentator-dead-at-85/2013/08/14/891c3b34-c5da-11df-94e1c5afa35a9e59_story.html
February 10: Are Presidential Candidates Decipherable as People?
Theme: The essence of old-fashioned political coverage is that spending enough time
probing the backgrounds and inner psyches of the presidential contenders offers revealing
clues about how they would govern from the Oval Office. Is this a valid premise or is it a
conceit that mars the judgment of reporters? The way to test it is to read the Joe Biden
chapters from the best biographical study of presidential contenders ever written.
Reading: Selected chapters on Joe Biden from What It Takes. Pages 248-275 (Chapter
17). Pages 300-306 (Chapter 19). Pages 312-315 (start of Chapter 21). Pages 364-374
(Chapter 25). Pages 423-430 (Chapter 30). Pages 479-493 (Chapters 38-39). Pages 498501 (Chapter 41). Pages 535-545 (Chapters 46-47). Pages 631-663 (Chapters 62-67).
Pages 708-714 (Chapters 77-78). Pages 905-910 (Chapter 112). Pages 1035-1037 (from
the Epilogue). Also read the four-page Authors Note.
Note: Richard Ben Cramer died in January 2013. To give a flavor of what he meant to
political journalism, I have included links to several obituaries and appreciations:
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1210/46906.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/09/us/richard-ben-cramer-writer-on-large-topics-diesat-62.html?ref=obituaries
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/01/08/richard-ben-cramer-dies-iconic-writerhad-an-unerring-ear-for-dialogue.html
http://news.yahoo.com/to-honor-richard-ben-cramer--politicians-and-journalists-need-tomuster-what-it-took-to-produce-%E2%80%98what-it-takes%E2%80%99212519014.html
February 17: Candidates on the Couch (Continued)

Theme: The discussion, which will also hark back to What It Takes, will center on
whether it is still possible to obtain up-close views of major presidential candidates.
Another topic will be the dangers of access based on the highly sympathetic treatment of
John Edwards in One-Car Caravan. We will also review the themes of the first six weeks
of the course.
Reading: Selected chapters from One-Car Caravan. Pages 1-57 (Chapters 1-3). Pages
121-141 (Chapter 7). Pages 152-194 (Chapters 9-10). Also read the Authors Note.
Also for a John Edwards update read: http://www.salon.com/2008/08/14/edwards_32/
Note: Anyone having difficulties obtaining a copy of One-Car Caravan should please
see me.
Part Two: The Media Meltdown and Its Consequences for Campaign Coverage
February 24: Journalism in a Time of Economic Peril
Theme: Central to this seminar is understanding how and why the economic model that
sustained the 20th century political journalism has collapsed. From the hyperpoliticization of cable television news (Fox News and MSNBC) to the breathless win-thenews-cycle ethos of Politico, new styles of journalism are emerging to fill the void
created by the absence of serious political coverage outside a handful of major
newspapers. But are they an adequate replacement for what was lost when, say, 40
newspapers covered national politics with their own reporters. We will also discuss the
way that news-aggregation sites (everything from Google News to the Huffington Post)
jeopardize original reporting since a fast rewrite of, say, a Washington Post story can
garner more clicks than the initial article.
Readings: The Pew Research Centers Report on the State of the News Media in 2013.
Here is the link to the overall report: http://stateofthemedia.org/ Please read the sections
on Newspapers, Network and Cable TV.
A look at how the newspaper industry missed the digital age in a 2011 Columbia
Journalism Review article by Michael Shapiro. All the articles below are available online:
http://www.cjr.org/feature/the_newspaper_that_almost_seized_the_future.php?page=all
A 2010 profile of Politicos Mike Allen by Mark Leibovich in the New York Times
Magazine http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/25/magazine/25allen-t.html?pagewanted=all
(This is expanded in Leibovichs new book, This Town).
A counter-intuitive look at newspaper economics from media analyst Ken Doctor:
http://www.niemanlab.org/2013/11/the-newsonomics-of-the-surprisingly-persistentappeal-of-newsprint/

An article in the Columbia Journalism Review on BuzzFeeds 2012 campaign coverage:

http://www.cjr.org/united_states_project/buzzfeed_la_times_top_campaign_coverage_20
12.php?page=all
An in-depth look at the Huffington Post by Michael Shapiro (a friend, but not a relative):
http://www.cjr.org/cover_story/six_degrees_of_aggregation.php?page=all
Warren Buffett in his 2013 annual report to his stockholders explained why Berkshire
Hathaway is being contrarian and aggressively buying newspapers:
http://jimromenesko.com/2013/03/01/i-love-newspapers-warren-buffett-tellsshareholders/#more-37148
A dead-on parody from the Onion that underscores something important:
http://www.theonion.com/articles/huffington-post-employee-sucked-into-aggregationt,27244
And a two-minute video from 1981 tells is filled with the might-have-beens of the
newspaper industrys reaction to the Internet:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WCTn4FljUQ
Part Three: Keeping Up with the Fast-Changing Tactical Landscape of Politics
March 3: The Enduring Verities of Presidential Campaigns
Theme: For all the changes in political tactics and technology that we will discuss in the
weeks ahead, the emphasis of campaign journalism remains fixated on what the candidate
did and said on the campaign trail. Is this a valid exercise in an era of dwindling budgets
for reporters or does this journalistic approach with its emphasis on gotcha moments
distort the reality of modern presidential campaigns? We will also discuss whether the
political press corps was initially skeptical enough about Barack Obama in 2008 against
the background of his historic campaign
Readings: The Candidate, Pages 1-132 and 261-272. (Chapters One, Two, Three, Four
and Ten)
March 24: Are Reporters the Last Innocents in a Brave New World of Political
Technology?
Theme: Not too long ago, if a reporter interviewed the campaign strategist, the pollster
and the media consultant, he or she had a clear sense of what of what was happening
behind the scenes. Now rapid changes in the techniques of getting elected make it much
harder for journalists to understand the dynamics of modern campaigns. This theme,
which is at the center of The Victory Lab, will be a major topic throughout the rest of the
semester.

Readings: The Victory Lab, Pages 70-86 and 143-301. (Chapters Three, Six, Seven,
Eight, Nine and Ten
Part Four: The 2012 Campaign as Seen through the Rear-View Mirror
March 31: How Did Well Did the Media Grasp the Realities of Campaign 2012?
Theme: Harking back to the unstructured conversation about the 2012 campaign (see
Week One: Overview for Shoppers), we will now begin to dissect the medias
performance based on what we have learned about the mores of todays journalists and
the economic pressures they face. There will be an emphasis on themes that dominated
the media conservation, but had scant relevance to either voter behavior or how
Readings: Campaign for President: The Managers Look at 2012. (Pages to be assigned).
This is an edited version of the post-election conference held at the Institute of Politics at
Harvard.
Sasha Issenbergs 2012 Obama campaign retrospective (available online):
http://www.technologyreview.com/featuredstory/509026/how-obamas-team-used-bigdata-to-rally-voters/
Boston Globe retrospective on Romney campaign by Michael Kranish (December 22,
2012). Available online with this link:
http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2012/president/2012/12/23/the-story-behind-mittromney-loss-the-presidential-campaign-presidentobama/2QWkUB9pJgVIi1mAcIhQjL/story.html
April 7: The Challenges for Campaign Reporters in an Era of Twitter and Social Media
Theme: With little in politics these days remaining off-the-record and with every moment
instantly tweeted and video constantly uploaded onto the web, we have entered into a
different kind of campaign environment where the intimacies between candidates and
reporters of the Boys on the Bus era seem as far away as the Punic Wars. The central topic
for this class will be the implications of this decline in journalistic access.
Readings: Collision 2012 (specific pages to be assigned).
Also, CNN reporter Peter Hambys essay for the Shorenstein Center at Harvard entitled,
Did Twitter Kill the Boys on the Bus?
http://shorensteincenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/d80_hamby.pdf
April 14: Two Case Studies about Medias Coverage of 2012 Campaign

Theme: The two political scientists (John Sides and Lynn Vavreck) who wrote The
Gamble argue that the Obama teams anti-Bain ads (broadcast in the late spring and early
summer) had no effect on voter perceptions of Mitt Romney. Reporters and political
operatives from both campaigns argue that the anti-Bain commercials were highly
effective in demonizing Romney as an out-of-touch politician. We will discuss these
diametrically opposed viewpoints in depth, since they are emblematic of whether the
media understands the campaign it is purporting to cover. A second case study will
revolve around how little the 2012 campaign press understood the invisible wars being
waged on social media platforms like Facebook. We will discuss the implications of
changing technology on future campaign coverage.
Readings: The Gamble (specific chapters to be assigned)
April 21: Wrapping Up and onto 2016 and Beyond
Theme: We will continue with any leftover discussion from the April 15 case studies. But
mostly this will be a class in which we discuss your conclusions about the future of the
eternal dance between political campaigns and the reporters who cover them. We will
also review the big themes of the semester. And the seminar will end with everyone
leaving the theater singing the title tune.
Readings: A few articles will be assigned to augment the themes that we have covered.
But the reading will be deliberately light because of the impending deadline for the final
paper.
-30-