Palin and the Media

Sarah Palin is the perfect example of a politician using the media as a tool to gain recognition and supporters, but only by further jeopardizing their image. Palin has time and time again presented herself as a fame-seeker and oblivious to the real issues out there. She has shown more concern about her image in the mainstream media than other politicians, which is in itself questionable, but still manages to put her foot in her mouth more often than not.

Recently, Palin followers blew up her Wikipedia page after she made a complete fool of herself, incorrectly discussing Paul Reveres famous ride. Those behind Wikipedia had to temporarily disable the ability for users to edit pages because of the overload of users attempting to alter the page. However, this isn’t the only issue concerning the media Palin has been in contact with recently. 

Palin recently went on the road for a bus tour called “One Nation.” During this tour, Palin refused to provide any details to the press about her whereabouts and planned route. All reporters had to rely on other sources and tips to track Palin’s tour, making it extremely frustrating to provide much information to the public. However, once reporters caught up with Palin and began to ask her questions she was more than willing to answer and make time for them. This new strategy of Palin’s, while rather unusual, really was taking a step away from the current political campaigning trends. The media can often manipulate stories and make a campaign, or in this case a bus tour unable to portray the true message they had meant to. Sometimes the media can make campaigning even rougher than it should be.

While Palin is consistently the major element that has been connection our media to politic presently. While most politicians try to use the media as a platform to gain for recognition and voters, Palin has seemed to be more captivated by the fame it has brought her. From the SNL skits mocking Sarah Palins dense demeanor to her confusing newspaper reporters, she has been connected to media manipulation in many different instances and I have a strong feeling she will continue to do so until it ceases to rise her fame.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/06/04/palin.tour/index.html?hpt=po_bn5