Even as a Buttigieg fan, some of these fawning columns about him irritate me

[Recursion]

Specifically I dislike it when a politics writer essentially asks "Why is this guy who we're all deciding to write a column about suddenly surging in the polls?" Duh.

Trump was essentially handed the R nomination by the media. They really need to take their jobs during primaries more seriously, and do some background on every candidate.

[Funtatlaguy]

1. Right now Pete is a very shiny new penny.

Only 37
Mayor from small town
Midwestern
Rhodes scholar
Speaks seven languages
Plays piano well
Afghan war Vet
Christian
Openly gay
Married to man

That’s a lot of FIRSTS in a prez candidate for the media to explore.
The media loves firsts.
They love new and shiny.
That will soon wear off, though.
He will then be treated like the rest and they will search for the flaws.

[mysteryowl]

2. Agreed! Equal media attention.

Mayor Pete is so interesting though, the media can't stay away. Plus, he is really making the rounds with multiple & diverse media sources. A smart tactic!

[Iliyah]

3. He is fresh air compared to what we have in the WH and

the Republican party.

The combination of the Democratic Party's candidates, in particular, Mayor Pete is young, quite the road scholar and media fierce.

[DownriverDem]

4. For me

It's who can beat trump. Who can win the electoral college? It's not who I like or who you like. It's who can win.

[marylandblue]

7. That's a difficult thing to assess. You can look at polls but people change their minds.

You can base it your what you think they want, but they may not know what they want themselves. You can base it on the assumption that moderates are better, familiar is better, gender or race matters, etc., but these are just assumptions.

So saying you just want someone who can win gets you nowhere. Instead ask what a winning candidate looks like, and who best fits that.

[marylandblue]

5. Buttigieg and Trump share the ability to use the media effectively.

Trump says outrageous things they can't help but cover. He presses buttons deep in their reporter brains. He also cultivates media relationships, people he gives juicy stories to, in exchange for positive coverage.

Buttigieg aggressively pursue interviews. He probably has someone calling media outlets day and night and seems never to turn down an opportunity. He seems to engage with the hosts, so they will want to talk to him again.

Winning candidates have media strategies to get them more coverage. That has a lot to do with why you see some people more than others.

[BlueFlorida]

6. I am more amused by

the Sanders ra ra ra OPs which have no basis in reality.

Buttigieg's OPs are ok in my book. They are realistic by and large.

[Indygram]

9. They are getting very repetitive

And sadly it has gotten to be the same, if not worse level as the Sanders threads.

[BlueFlorida]

10. They think convincing some 1,000 people

on DU will help him win the election.

[Indygram]

12. Maybe

it's getting a bit excessive, though.

[Hortensis]

8. "Birth of a Cult Figure" will be aired next year on cable.

But we're watching it now.

No insult to Buttigieg. I really doubt he could have predicted his unsuspected perfection would spark this.

[BlueFlorida]

11. Next year?

I saw "Birth of a cult figure" in 2016 -- perhaps a prequel?

[Hortensis]

14. Lol. Next in a series.

[NewJeffCT]

13. I don't support anybody

but, I think Mayor Pete is the media flavor of the month - they're looking for a compelling story for next year's election and he would be a near complete opposite to Donny Dollhands.