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Appreciate the piece. The book excerpt touches on something that's been a pet theory of mine for a while, what I've (internally) called the country-clubification of the industry. The increasing attraction of the potential fame and money that started accruing to journalism (especially telejournalism?) leading to a more insular group of people growing ever more detached from the "real world" allegedly represented by the ubiquitous diner safaris. Not the point of the essay at hand, but I'm curious to know what you think of that-- or should I save that for a Friday AMA? :)

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founding
Nov 9, 2021Liked by James Fallows

The electoral equivalent of this is "horse race" coverage: Which candidate is ahead and how. Not what they're saying.

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I'd be interested in your view on how the "politics as sports" approach had its origins with the "Making of the President" books by Theodore White in the early 1960s. Did those books change the way the news media covers politics and government?

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