Washington Post
columnist Marc Fisher apparently was deluged with anti-Russ Potts comments prior to his online chat today. Fisher had written a piece on Tuesday that crossed the line from opinion journalism to hagiography.
This question and response went to the heart of media’s role:
Saltville, Va.: Why don’t you just admit upfront that Russ Potts makes good copy and that you aren’t going to disturb this endless trove of sound bytes by looking too closely at the man’s flip-flops, his motivation, or the depth of his positions?
Marc Fisher: Potts certainly wins something of a bye because he is crusty, outspoken, fun and has little chance of winning. So if his function is to keep the other candidates’ feet to the fire on issues they’d rather not address, then, yes, he is likely to win less scrutiny than Kilgore and Kaine will get. But if he starts showing himself to be a real contender, then he’d get the same sort of close and vigorous coverage that the Dem and the Repo will get.
Now we know–unless you might win, you get a pass if you’re a “media darling.”