Campaigns Don't Count: How the Media Get American Politics All WrongThroughout most of 2004, the presidential election was too close to call in the polls. Journalists and politicians alike insisted that its outcome would depend on developments in the Iraq war, on the state of the economy, and on the strength of each candidate's campaign. But one veteran columnist in Ohio-author Martin Gottlieb-wrote in a January 2004 column that President George W. Bush "has won" the election. He repeated this point several times throughout the year. How could he be so confident? After decades of observation, Gottlieb has concluded that the best system for predicting the outcome of an American election-and, more important, for explaining American politics-is one devised by Professor Allan J. Lichtman of American University in Washington. It's a system that emphasizes the importance of reality over imagery. Campaigns Don't Count takes the reader briskly through recent American political history, taking note of predictions of all sorts. What emerges is a new way to think about American democracy. Gottlieb's case will intrigue journalists and anyone else interested in American politics. |
