The front page above the fold piece in the Boston Globe is headlined:
A Scrap For Every Vote
and it’s a story about the race Scott Brown and Elizabeth Warren. But here’s what landed on the front page up to the jump to an inside page:
ATTLEBORO – Turning up the collar of his barn jacket to the wind, Scott Brown mingles with campaign voters outside a Stop & Shop on a chilly Sunday morning. One woman requests his autograph for a local who is turning 104. Can he believe it? He can. He has already called to wish her a happy birthday.
He arches his back, then lifts his knee to stretch, noting he has already had his morning run and bike ride. Brown seems so relaxed, he even dashes into Stop & Shop to grab a few things. He emerges with dog food and kitty litter, which he hauls out to the parking lot and slings onto the flatbed of his dirty green pickup, the same truck that sealed his everyman identity and ushered him to national celebrity two years ago.
Retail events like these are Brown’s forte, showcasing the approachability that helped propel him to an unlikely victory, the underestimated Republican who succeeded the giant, Ted …continued A7
Wow. Is this a newspaper story or an advertisement. Do we really need to read He arches his back, then lifts his knee to stretch, noting he has already had his morning run and bike ride. OK, so he’s fit. But that’s not all.
He’s already called the 104 yr-old to wish her happy birthday, has a cat and a dog and goes to the market to buy them food and litter — likes pets and does the shopping. (I guess this is because he’s courting women voters) Of course we read about the barn jacket, the truck. Why doesn’t the Globe just come out and endorse him now or fess up that they’re on his PR payroll.
Meanwhile, for those readers who turn to page A7, you’ll be treated to this flattering description of Elizabeth Warren.
“On a recent visit to a Plymouth pub, she drew a capacity audience on short notice. Warren worked the room, pumping hands, posing for photographs, scribbling her autograph for one woman’s friends in California. Then, she stood before the crowd and delivered her fiery stump speech, waving her finger in the air to punctuate her points. ”
Wow again. This one is pure politician working the room, pumping hands and waving her finger in the air. And later in the piece The Globe reminds us of Brown’s campaign messaging about warren:
“Brown’s campaign has already cast Warren in a similar light, as an elitist Harvard Law professor who is out of touch with the concerns of everyday voters.”
Thank you Boston Globe. I had forgotten that Brown says Warren’s an elitist.
Here’s a link to the story:
http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2012/03/31/trail-with-scott-brown-and-elizabeth-warren/2S5EeMwfxtGH9G0YpoXwmL/story.html
And one to Joan Vennochi’s Op-ed about the dynamics of the race and Warren’s MIA strategy
http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2012/03/31/brown-winning-strategy/KuGYLWTEjGOchI7SSDbmxN/story.html
sabutai says
…is that you don’t have to cover the news to file the story.
Randomly move around a couple synonymous adjectives a la Danielle Steele, and you have next week’s “coverage” ready to go.