It's Still the Economy, Stupid

According to the News Coverage Index for Nov 10-16, the country's weakened economy rivaled the Presidential transition as the top story of the week, with nothing else coming close. That was driven in part by a change in the Bush administration's bailout strategy that seemed to suggest an even grimmer economic prognosis, and Congress arguing over a controversial bailout for the failing auto industry. For the week, the media narrative of the incoming Obama Administration was the No. 1 story, but only barely, filling 24% of the overall newshole studied. Most of the coverage of the new presidency (about two-thirds) was devoted to three major storylines—the logistics of the transfer of power from Bush to Obama, predictions about the tone and substance of an Obama presidency and speculation about who might populate the top jobs in that administration.