Thanks to the Internet, and with the explosion of blogging especially, all of a sudden we political types have an easier time spreading around our dirt. In the past, we used to have to play by the rules of the old media: space limitations, kissing reporter’s butts and packaging the story just right.
Now, and especially for big campaigns, all you have to do is leak it to a blogger, or in this case, The Smoking Gun.
The fascinating thing to me is the reasoning behind the leaks. Before, you wanted to get something into a newspaper or TV so you could cite it in your advertisement as a legitimate news source. Now, they get it into the bloodstream early so reporters define candidates in their coverage.
Giving it to TSG wasn’t exactly the best way to write a narrative, but the blogs will take it from there. My guess is that now, for a cycle or two at least, the “Rudy is damaged goods” story goes up a notch.
WWB Update, Feb. 17: Guess not. The Edwards blogger fiasco was the online story this week. Meanwhile, not too much on Giuliani’s second cousin wedding/annullment (FDR and Eleanor were distant cousins, right?). And one could argue Romney has it the worst.
To me this sounds like another one of those “Politician does oppo research, people shocked” sort of situations. I’m unlikely to vote for the guy based on his policy, but it’s not like I find him doing a study of the weaknesses of his mayoral campaign to be totally shocking. My word, he was acting like he wanted to get elected! THE HORROR!
To be clear, Rudy didn’t do this, McCain or Romney did. They somehow got a hold of this book and sent it out to screw up Rudy’s impending announcement.
Oh sure, I got that much, what I was getting at is I actually don’t think the book itself is that big a deal.
Bet on McCain. His campaign style is hard-knuckled, down and dirty. The whole story of him being a “victim” in 2000 was no more than a media myth, based on one wacko preacher in SC who was unaffilitated with, and unknown to, the Bush campaign. The guy, his wife, and daughter in law sat around one day, making less than 200 calls altogether, running a fake “push poll” which implied McCain had fathered an out-of-wedlock, mixed-race child (the kid in question was his adopted child). Bush condemned it the day it hit the air, and no one ever established any connection to ANY Republican or conservative organization. Yet, it became the meme of the media.
Bush won because McCain denied negative campaigning on his own part in the debate, and was floored when Bush pulled out a McCain campaign flyer which had been distributed at 15 Wal-Mart parking lots the previous weekend. It was like a spotlight hitting a burglar’s face as he is coming out the window with the loot.
And no, this didn’t even have a significant effect for 24 hours, so it means nothing in the campaign.
What IS significant is NPB’s opening paragraph. Very true, and a mixed bag. While the old system gave the reporters and their editors too much power over the info, the new paradigm provides for no filtering at all. Any false story will make the rounds quickly - if it’s really juicy, it will spread like wildfire. Blogs are good about self-policing (as a group), but the first cut does the most damage. If a blockbuster charge hit close enough to Election Day, a false rumor might well turn a close race.