National Newspaper Analysis of the Press Coverage of Jesse Jackson's 1984 Presidential Campaign: The Confirmation of the Candidate

Jesse Jackson's 1984 and 1988 presidential cam paigns ha ve motivated thousands of citizens throughout America to take a more active role in politics. The 1 984 campaign witnessed many previously unregistered Americans actively participating in Jackson's call to j oin the "Rainbow Coalition." Four years later, Jackson once again hit a responsive chord within the American electorate, broadening his support base in his second run for the White House. His vibrant campaigns presented challenges not only to the American system of government, but also to accepted j ournalistic traditions in campaign reporting. Specifically, the dilemma has been a difficult one for journalists responsible for campaign coverage. How much coverage should a reporter give to Jesse Jackson's campaign? Should he be treated like an Alan Cranston or Gary Hart in 1984, or a Paul Simon or Albert Gore in 1 988? Or does the historical impact of his being the first black candidate to make a serious bid for the presidency warrant a different approach to press coverage? Highlighting this dilemma in the 1 984 campaign, Dates and Gandy note: Jackson's candidacy was a challenge for the press because on the one hand j ournalistic traditions would dictate that the ideological orientation of the media organization would constrain its coverage to be consistent with longstanding edi torial practice. l Yet, as Gandy and Dates point out, the national press remains a ware of the " persistent complaints from their critics that they openly dis criminate against minorities, or systematically ignore them."2 Given such j ournalistic constraints and Jackson's emergence as a credible national candidate in two presidential elections, interesting questions