The New York Times
Now that journalists are recording video and tweeting so much from the campaign trail, they no longer get an inside, intimate look at the candidates, David Brooks writes. “As the technology gets more open, the lines of political communications become more closed.” So what’s the value of going on the road now? Surprise! It’s the voters:
Now the best part is meeting the people who come to the rallies. It’s best to get to the events an hour early and treat the waiting crowd like a cocktail party. First, you ask people about the local economy. Then you ask them about their lives (about which they are always interesting). Then you ask them about what they think of the issues and candidates (they generally repeat the banalities they have heard one of us pundits utter on TV the day before).
Related: Dana Milbank confesses “how little journalism occurs on the campaign trail” (The Washington Post)Â | More female reporters covering the campaigns (Poynter)
