General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: I really don't want to hear about potential Presidential candidates right now ... [View all]Caliman73
(11,730 posts)As other posters have stated, the election season is too long and the focus in the media appears to be on personalities, conflict, and scandal rather than on policies and approach to the job. The reason for these problems is two fold in my opinion.
1. Elections appear to be a commodity now.
They are big business and a lot of people stand to get rich or at least get paid from elections. Consultants, media personalities, pundits, etc... all have a piece of the pie, not to mention the candidates themselves who raise money, get their name out there, and even if they don't win, can get lucrative gigs as a result. Candidates are packaged and sold to us, not based on their policies, but on their brand which has been manufactured by consultants and communications directors. Elections cost millions of dollar for Senate seats, hundreds of thousands for the House, and up to or over a billion dollars for the Presidency.
2. The 24 hour media cycle.
This is part of the "big business" aspect but I think separate enough to be its own unique problem. There is always news, but there isn't really a need to cover news 24 hours a day. Cable news has proven this over and over, especially as they cover the same stories over and over again within that 24 hour framework. News is as much for entertainment as it is for information these days, with the focus being on opinions and conflicts about the news being reported rather than finding the facts and reporting the information. The line between journalist and editorialist is blurred and while there has always been bias in reporting, there is a whole segment of the media now dedicated to pushing a specific narrative.
Elections have never been pure in this country. There has always been mudslinging, dirty tactics, grandstanding, etc... I am not naively thinking that there was ever a "good ole days" where people just honestly discussed and debated policies and the electorate was informed and active. The problem with today is that elections are completely commercial. Trump has reduced elections to a reality show or WWE type process where the "heel v hero" dynamic is at play and the loudest voice in the crowd gets the most attention.
We certainly need a break. I for one do not want a perpetual election cycle.