This Shorenstein Center report examines media coverage of the 1988 presidential election and proposes recommendations for campaign coverage moving forward. In the aftermath of the 1988 election, Republicans wondered how the personal background of vice presidential candidate Dan Quayle could, for a time, sweep away all other issues in the campaign. Democrats mused bitterly about the effectiveness of negative advertising directed at nominee Michael Dukakis. Journalists wondered whether they were among the ones culpable in the decline of American political discourse. Did political advertising take the place of reportage? Was there too much focus on the horse race? Did reporters fail to scrutinize the assertions of candidates? This report identifies specific problems that arose in the 1988 election, and provides recommendations for campaign coverage moving forward.
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The Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy is a Harvard Kennedy School research center dedicated to exploring and illuminating the intersection of press, politics and public policy in theory and practice. The Center strives to bridge the gap between journalists and scholars, and between them and the public.
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