Press Release

Press to the Public: "It's the Horserace, Stupid"

How a Mortgage Crisis, Impending Recession, and Other Economic Issues Were Virtually Ignored in the Presidential Primary Debates.

** To Read the Full Report CLICK HERE **

Washington, D.C. - Media Matters Action Network recently released a study analyzing the questions asked by media figures who moderated the presidential primary debates. The report documents how, with few exceptions, their questions focused on trivial matters such as polls and political tactics at the expense of important and substantive issues like the economy. Some of the more glaring findings in the report include:

• Only 9 percent of the total 2,304 questions concerned the economy.

• Of the economy-focused questions, more than one-third were frivolous, irrelevant, attempting to elicit a "gotcha" moment, or otherwise non-substantive.

• Only six questions out of the total 2,304 were related to subprime loans or the mortgage crisis.

Looking exclusively at the questions asked of Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain, the results are mixed. The good news: All questions regarding the economy posed to McCain and Obama were relevant and substantive. The bad news: The two candidates were only asked 20 such questions throughout the entire primary season -- 11 for McCain and nine for Obama.  Of the two candidates, only Obama was asked one question related to the mortgage crisis.

"The economy is just one of a whole host of important issues that was essentially avoided in favor of more lurid horserace and argument-provoking questions," said Spokesman J. Jioni Palmer. "It is unfortunate to have to learn a lesson the hard way. Economic questions shouldn't have been relegated to a perfunctory level when there were already major problems with subprime lenders and numerous signs pointing to an impending recession."

**To find out more about the methodology and key findings CLICK HERE.**