Why is the Texas Lege important? - Gets little attention, but … - Passes the state budget ◦ Education funding - Sets public education rules ◦ STAAR Tests - Crafts higher education rules ◦ Top 10% - Levies social policy ◦ Abortion regulations
Overview: Traditional Reporting Models - Conceptually, we all understand community journalism - On a nuts and bolts level, though, what does community newspaper coverage of local elections look like? - What defines it, practically?
Overview: Traditional Reporting Models - Relentless focus on local issues - Focus on general elections rather than primaries - Focus on competitive elections, but not uncompetitive ones - Coverage snowballs into “He said, he said” type-coverage - Devotion to print product over new media platforms - Focus on campaign rather than issues or ideas - Accepts low voter turnout as standard and routine
Problems with tradition … - Relentless focus on local issues - Focus on general elections rather than primaries - Focus on competitive elections, but not uncompetitive ones - Coverage snowballs into “He said, he said” type-coverage - Devotion to print product over new media platforms - Focus on campaign rather than issues or ideas - Accepts low voter turnout as standard and routine
Problems with tradition … - Relentless focus on local issues ◦ Even local campaigns are rarely, if ever, focused on local issues - Focus on general elections rather than primaries ◦ Most local elections are single-party - Focus on competitive elections, but not uncompetitive ones ◦ Most elections are thoroughly predictable - Coverage snowballs into “He said, he said” type-coverage ◦ Lack of objective information disconnected from campaigns
Problems with tradition … - Devotion to print product over new media platforms ◦Social media get eclipsed by profitability and routine grind of the “dead trees” product - Focus on campaign rather than issues or ideas ◦Allows campaigns to set media agenda and coverage - Accepts low voter turnout as standard and routine ◦Snowballs into political polarization, radicalism and voter disengagement
Problems → Solutions - Relentless focus on local issues ◦Even local campaigns are rarely, if ever, focused on local issues - Embrace localization and non-local topics ◦If a candidate wants to discuss Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump, write about it ◦It’s still local – local reactions and perspectives on those macro-level issues absolutely qualify as local - Al Cross will talk about this later today, so let’s move on
Purple, we ain’t - Focus on general elections rather than primaries ◦Most local elections are single-party - Step One: Cover primaries and general elections equally ◦Primaries are growing in importance, both in Texas and nationally ◦As 24-hour news cycle grows and grows, these early elections will become more competitive and more divisive ◦Tactically, there’s not a huge difference for journalists ◦An election is an election, and treating elections equally matters
Purple, we ain’t - Focus on general elections rather than primaries ◦Most local elections are single-party - Step Two: Recognize that R&D are basically meaningless in 2016 ◦Every Republican in Texas is a devout constitutional conservative and member of the Tea Party, etc etc ◦Every Democrat is a champion of economic equality and social justice, etc etc ◦Spoiler Alert: They’re not as monochrome as they’d have you believe
Intra-party rifts - In practice, the GOP falls along two lines: ◦Traditional, pro-business Republicans like Jeb Bush & company ◦A modern breed of anti-government libertarian a la Barry Goldwater and Ted Cruz - Democrats tend to vary ideologically, too ◦Moderates like Chris Bell who harken to Bill Clinton circa 1992 ◦Devout liberals and moustache aficionados like Lon Burnam, who are more Bernie and Obama ◦African American or Hispanic democrats with distinct agendas
How can you tell? - First: Assume nothing ◦Treat primaries as competitive, multi-party elections because for all practical purposes that’s exactly what they are - Second: Ask questions that expose distinctions between them ◦If elected, would you support House Speaker Joe Straus? ◦What role do you feel the state should play in public education? ◦How do you feel about the Texas Enterprise Fund? ◦Under what circumstances should the Lege tap the Rainy Day Fund?
Problems → Solutions - Focus on campaign rather than issues or ideas ◦Allows campaigns to set media agenda and coverage - By asking detail- and policy-oriented questions, you reclaim your own headlines ◦Given the option, candidates would rather prattle on crowd- pleasing lines and a specific set of issues ◦Don’t let them. Press them on specifics and details, both on those cliché topics and more specific questions of your choosing
What issues? - Water rights ◦ Huge urban / rural divide - Higher education ◦ Top 10% law popular in country, frowned upon in suburbs - Fracking ◦ Denton v Texas - Toll roads
Problems → Solutions - Focus on campaign rather than issues or ideas ◦Allows campaigns to set media agenda and coverage - Don’t wait for a campaign to issue a release or comment about a detailed policy issue ◦Pursue that policy yourself ◦Make a series out of it if you want - Policy should be covered during elections, not after them
Problems → Solutions - Coverage snowballs into “He said, he said” type-coverage ◦ Lack of objective information disconnected from campaigns - Focusing on particular policy and specific topics helps, but it doesn’t get you all the way there ◦ You have to also recognize the campaigns as campaigns ◦ Those campaigns are constantly jockeying for your coverage, but offering little to no objective perspective - So what do you do?
Awesome online databases - Texas Secretary of State has online win/loss records dating back to 1992 http://www.sos.state.tx.us/elec tions/historical/index.shtml
Awesome online databases - Who Represents Me? ◦ Helps match names, counties and district numbers ◦ (Spoiler: The numbers have no rhyme or reason to them) http://www.fyi.legis.state.tx.u s/Home.aspx
Awesome online databases - Data indicate: ◦Number of contributions under $100 ◦Names of major donors ◦Zip codes of donors – in district vs out of district ◦Total cash on hand, which can be compared across candidates ◦Total expenses as well
Awesome online databases - Individual names offer great opportunity ◦Contact individual donors ◦Other and/or former officeholders may show up, too ◦Another great way to determine intra-party loyalties
Problems → Solutions - Coverage snowballs into “He said, he said” type-coverage ◦Lack of objective information disconnected from campaigns - Also: You can totally contact lobbying groups and endorsing organizations for comment or clarification ◦The campaign may be mislabeling an endorsement or making up an organization … it happens
Problems → Solutions - Devotion to print product over new media platforms ◦Social media get eclipsed by profitability and routine grind of the “dead trees” product - The politicians you’re covering are on social media ◦They will drop stupid, provocative or revealing bombs online. It’s only a matter of time.
Problems → Solutions - Even if politicians don’t step in a scandal or gaffe, you can still draw from their posts and conversations for article ideas - It’s becoming more and more common
Problems → Solutions - Focus on competitive elections, but not uncompetitive ones ◦Most elections are thoroughly predictable - Accepts low voter turnout as standard and routine ◦Snowballs into political polarization, radicalism and voter disengagement
Theoretical Sidebar: Community is imagined - How you cover your communities shapes those communities - The values and routines you embrace will be shared and absorbed by your readers, neighbors and advertisers ◦They also help shape the paper
Put another way: - Voters in 2048 will base their decisions on the values absorbed during their youth ◦That’s now, watching their parents, teachers and communities discuss what’s shaping up to be a major political realignment - Candidates in 2020 will base their candidacy on voter behavior in 2016 ◦“Every Speaker is a reflection of the previous Speaker” - Winners and losers in 2016 will be based, at least partly, on campaign coverage
Emphasize dialogue - Host discussions/debates across job and party lines ◦House & Senate, Republican & Democrat & etc - Host discussions among interest groups ◦Tea Party, Chamber of Commerce, and school board president - Host one-on-one public interviews with prominent officeholders and citizens ◦SBOE member, former state reps, prominent local donors
Emphasize dialogue - Host discussions/debates across job and party lines ◦House & Senate, Republican & Democrat & etc - Host discussions among interest groups ◦Tea Party, Chamber of Commerce, and school board president - Host one-on-one public interviews with prominent officeholders and citizens ◦SBOE member, former state reps, prominent local donors - No “Report Cards!” This isn’t a class, and it’s not a game
Emphasize inclusivity - Democracy crumbles when too few voices are engaged - Media tend to over-emphasize conflict and prestige ◦Under-emphasize routine, pedestrian or disengaged voices - Publish polling locations, times and dates often ◦It’s good enough for Yelp, why isn’t it standard in politics? - So what’s the single best way to emphasize expand the types of quotes sources in your articles? ◦ Hint: It’s not what you’re saying, but how you’re saying it
Learn Spanish! - It would be a huge asset under normal circumstances, but … ◦You’re in Texas – Spanish speakers are literally everywhere ◦You’re in an election year where Hispanic and Latino turnout will be critical
Questions? Thoughts? Marcus Funk, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Mass Communication Sam Houston State University (210) 789-6057 [email protected] www.marcusjfunk.com
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