Media Not Concerned About the Very Poor

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http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/09/07-5



All this talk today about poverty got us wondering just how many people in America live below the poverty line,” anchor Scott Pelley announced on the CBS Evening News (2/1/12). By “all this talk,” Pelley was referring to less than 200 words, in a report CBS had just aired on GOP candidate Mitt Romney’s missteps, that discussed Romney’s remark that he wasn’t “concerned about the very poor.”

Though the brief story was actually about the political horse race, it apparently struck Pelley as an unusual amount of focus on poverty. And, sadly, he was right.

Poverty as an issue is nearly invisible in U.S. media coverage of the 2012 election, a new FAIR study has found—even though what candidates plan to do about an alarmingly growing poverty rate would seem to be a ripe topic for discussion in campaign coverage.

Even before the economic downturn made the poverty picture significantly worse in the United States, the Urban Institute reported that half of all Americans (51 percent) experience poverty at some time before age 65 (Urban Institute, 9/10/09).

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1. Spam deleted by Violet_Crumble (MIR Team)

[midnight]

2. Jeff Bridges discusses Hungry Kids program with both parties.

but other than that, I have not heard about any help for the poor....

[Heather MC]

3. the very poor were feeling the sting of an economic downturn long before 2008

2008 is when the media and the rich people begin to feel the economic downturn. I personally notice the economy taking a change just as George Bush was getting into office. and it got immediately worse after 9/11. they can't discuss the poor because they never SEE the poor.

Most people don't go to poor neighborhoods. they don't look at homeless people, they avoid them. if they have the unfortunate circumstance to be in the face of a homeless person like in a store or restaurant most of the time people will complain, and call the police to make the homeless person be removed.

people label poor neighborhoods as bad neighborhoods and they do their best to completely avoid them.

they will fight with local government to keep money from flowing into the poor neighborhoods.

my father lives in a dilapidated neighborhood. he is surrounded by 4 vacant houses that are falling apart.
there is no talk of repairing the neighborhoods. all of the money flows to the area of the city that have predominantly white people living in them.

it's 1 of the most depressing places I ever go to visit.

it was not always like that the neighborhood started going down rapidly after 4 major companies were shipped overseas in the early 90's. the poor neighborhoods never recovered.

they can't discuss the poor because they have all gotten really good about ignoring the poor in their daily lives.

[Hab Habit]

4. Scandalous

And very sad.

[blkmusclmachine]

5. In DC, the poor is known as "Too Small To Matter."

[pscot]

6. Why should they be

They don't know any poor folks.

[Solly Mack]

7. K&R

[sad sally]

8. Ever read Carolyn Chute's "The School on Heart's Road Content?"

Be afraid. Poor people are lazy and immoral, and violence is on their fingertips for some reason, who knows the reason, it's just their idea of fun. It's always this way; they steal cars, drugs, money and gunnnnz! They are filled with sex and rotten teeth and food stamps and Cadilacs and bad English! The men are bozos and incetuious. Pooe women are all victims of poor, domestically violent men. But the big to remember is poor men for some reason want to hurt hurt hurt kill kill kill. Here comes another one out of court, shackled and in an orange suit for shooting three times in the air for trying to scare his girlfriend who had all the charge cards. Weee are so lucky to have police and politicians to keep these poor and violent and lazy -for-some-reason guys off you and your darling Brendon and Chris and your golden retreiver and stuff.

a story about a group of people who live on the margins of our society...poor people.