Oh No! The Media Didn't Get ALL the Attention!

David Bernstein, of the Phoenix, is just oh-so-frustrated that bloggers got 30 minutes of Deval Patrick's attention for the first time during his Governorship - as opposed to all MSM, all the time. Lynne has much more.

Here's my responce to Bernstein, a comment I left on his Talking Politics blog.

David,

First, how many press conferences has Governor Patrick had since he was elected? How many media interactions - interviews, press releases, etc.? Please, as a respected member of the fourth estate, please enlighten me. In the 2+ months Deval Patrick has been governor, bloggers have been given a little more than 30 minutes with the governor - basically, enough time for most - but not all - of the attending bloggers at Boston Latin to ask one question. Suddenly, he's going around the media? That's absurd.

Second, I find it downright offensive that you are suggesting he's wrong to spend time on his constituents. How dare he hold town meetings around the state! I mean, the nerve of him! Furthermore, it's even more offensive that you feel the need to dictate how much time he should or should not dedicate toward his wife. Isn't that a personal matter? Or, are you a psychiatrist close to the case?

Third, while your first point has some merit, it's nothing new or especially poignant. Furthermore, Charley is right when he says Sal DiMasi is partly responsible for this too - after all, he's the one trying to block the repeal of unfair corporate tax loopholes. The fact is Deval Patrick's entire campaign was littered with references to his outsider status and he continually railed against Beacon Hill politics. So, we should be shocked that he'd criticize Beacon Hill politics on Saturday?

Quite frankly, I expect more out of the Phoenix's political coverage. I could read this kind of stuff in a Frank Phillips article - and that's not exactly a good thing. Everywhere across the country people praise town meetings - politicians like Senator Feingold of Wisconsin have earned wide praise for actually caring enough about his constituents to hold town hall meetings. Why is it that in Massachusetts, suddenly Town Meetings are a bad thing? It's not about circumventing the media, it's about being accessible to the people. It's about respecting democracy. It's about doing his job.