Thursday, August 27, 2015
A Head Scratcher
I have taken a leave of absence from this blog for far too long, and I promise to get back to writing about the media. And to make good on this promise, I give you this story that appeared in the August 26, 2015 issue of The New York Times.
It is a story by reporter Trip Gabriel, title "Test for Trump: Turning Crowds into Real Voters," and starts on A1 and continues on A11. On the front page, before the leap, the story would lead you to believe that Trump's campaign is a joke, whereas after the leap, you have an entirely different perception.
On A1, Gabriel begins: "Donald J. Trump, it is abundantly clear, is not a conventional candidate. And neither is his approach to recruiting campaign activists." Proof? Trump's Iowa campaign Chairwoman is Tana Goertz, who "has no political experience, picks the campaign's county leaders 'The Apprentice'-style--in head-to-head tests of public speaking, organizing and salesmanship. A stopwatch is involved." Goertz, it would seem, is herself a former participant on the now-defunct Trump show, "The Apprentice".
But then, on pg. A11, 11 paragraphs into the story, Gabriel explains that Trump is running a traditional, "retail politics" sort of campaign in Iowa. He writes: "Mr. Trump has put in place a robust field operation...grounded in the most time-proven methods." "He was the only candidate of 17 Republicans to plan a volunteer for all 11 days of the Iowa State Fair." "His little noticed volunteers collected hundreds of cards with voters' email addresses, provided invaluable contact data to activate more volunteers." And Gabriel admits that it "...was a far cry from the early days of his campaign, when actors were reportedly hired to fill out the crowd when he announced his presidential run." Furthermore, Trump has hired a "...30 year veteran of Iowa campaigns" who "has built one of the largest field teams of an Republican candidate this year: 10 paid staff members." Included in this field staff is another veteran of Iowa politics, who has been "recruiting a captain for every one of the 63 precincts" in her assigned territory.
I get it. Trump is a joke who has made this process so far a laughing stock with his coarse language and his incredible insensitivity to those who does not respect or like. But that should not give the venerable Times the freedom to misrepresent the competence of his campaign at this point in time.
It is a story by reporter Trip Gabriel, title "Test for Trump: Turning Crowds into Real Voters," and starts on A1 and continues on A11. On the front page, before the leap, the story would lead you to believe that Trump's campaign is a joke, whereas after the leap, you have an entirely different perception.
On A1, Gabriel begins: "Donald J. Trump, it is abundantly clear, is not a conventional candidate. And neither is his approach to recruiting campaign activists." Proof? Trump's Iowa campaign Chairwoman is Tana Goertz, who "has no political experience, picks the campaign's county leaders 'The Apprentice'-style--in head-to-head tests of public speaking, organizing and salesmanship. A stopwatch is involved." Goertz, it would seem, is herself a former participant on the now-defunct Trump show, "The Apprentice".
But then, on pg. A11, 11 paragraphs into the story, Gabriel explains that Trump is running a traditional, "retail politics" sort of campaign in Iowa. He writes: "Mr. Trump has put in place a robust field operation...grounded in the most time-proven methods." "He was the only candidate of 17 Republicans to plan a volunteer for all 11 days of the Iowa State Fair." "His little noticed volunteers collected hundreds of cards with voters' email addresses, provided invaluable contact data to activate more volunteers." And Gabriel admits that it "...was a far cry from the early days of his campaign, when actors were reportedly hired to fill out the crowd when he announced his presidential run." Furthermore, Trump has hired a "...30 year veteran of Iowa campaigns" who "has built one of the largest field teams of an Republican candidate this year: 10 paid staff members." Included in this field staff is another veteran of Iowa politics, who has been "recruiting a captain for every one of the 63 precincts" in her assigned territory.
I get it. Trump is a joke who has made this process so far a laughing stock with his coarse language and his incredible insensitivity to those who does not respect or like. But that should not give the venerable Times the freedom to misrepresent the competence of his campaign at this point in time.
Labels: 2016 Election, Donald Trump, Iowa Caucus, Republican Primary
