More Than 60% Don't Trust Campaign Coverage

MORE THAN 60% DON'T TRUST CAMPAIGN COVERAGE
Nearly two-thirds of Americans do not trust press coverage of the 2008 presidential campaign, according to a new Harvard University survey, which also revealed four out of five people believe coverage focuses too much on the trivial -- and more than 60% believe coverage is politically biased. The findings were among those in Harvard's Center for Public Leadership National Leadership Index. When asked if election coverage was politically biased, 40% believed it was too liberal; 21% too conservative; and 30% found it neutral. Nine percent of those responding were not sure. Among the findings: 64% of those polled do not trust press coverage of the presidential campaign. 88% believe that campaign coverage focuses on trivial issues. 84% believe that media coverage has too much influence on American voting choices. 92% say it is important that the news media provide information on candidates' specific policy plans, but 61% say the media does not provide enough coverage of policy plans. 89% say it is important to hear about candidates' personal values and ethics, but 43% say there is not enough coverage of personal values and ethics. Seventy percent of those polled said coverage of negative ads was not important and 65% said the media provided too much coverage of them; 67% say that coverage of "gotcha" moments -- candidates' embarrassing incidents and mistakes—was not important and 68% say there was too much coverage of those moments.
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