Media Surprisingly Uninterested In Spiking Gas Costs

They watched it like a hawk during the Bush presidency, and made sure you knew (or thought) that Bush's policies or lack thereof were driving the price.

Now, not so much. True, this is a mention in the media, but there's a big difference between a non-highlighted print mention and all three network newscasts displaying that Big Scary Up Arrow graphic as they note the rising cost of gas three times a week.

If political unrest in Libya spreads to other oil-rich countries and the ensuing chaos disrupts crude oil production, gas prices could hit $5 a gallon by peak summer driving season, industry analysts say.

I'm sure the media believes this is not Obama's fault. But instead of reporting the facts and either just trusting the public to figure things out for themselves, or offering some spin on behalf of Obama's failed administration, they simply choose to not report the facts in the first place. It's easier that way.

Of course, if the theory that the public will unfairly blame the president for ills not directly under his control is true, that means the media played their favored role as DNC shill by always mentioning oil prices under Bush; but I guess in some cases they don't mind so much if the public draws unfair inferences.

posted by Ace at 12:14 PM

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