Edited for Television

Edited for Television is a concise, accessible examination of the role of network and cable news media in American presidential campaigns. The second edition acknowledges the political changes that have taken place since the first edition, namely the key policy battles of Clinton’s first two years, the midterm elections, Clinton’s revival as a political force, and the 1996 election. Through all these changes, television continues to cover politics largely as it did four years ago. In particular, television reporters still make themselves and their concerns a central component of the political story.A new closing chapter considers the fact that, despite a deliberate effort by reporters to make their work more substantive in 1996, issue coverage remained sporadic and episodic while thematic content of cable and broadcast news again emphasized the horse race, personalities, process, and, to a lesser extent, nonissues. Examples of CNN and ABC news coverage from 1996 make interesting illustrations for the updated chapters.

Matthew R. Kerbel has been writing about the news media ever since he stopped writing for the news media. A one-time radio and television newswriter and employee of Public Broadcasting, he is author of three books on television and politics, and is professor of political science at Villanova University. He lives in Wayne, PA with his wife Adrienne and his daughter Gabrielle.