In a survey we conducted in September, Americans reported turning to hundreds of different news sources when seeking election and political information. The vast majority of Americans, however, name one particular source that they rely on most often—Fox News.
During the campaign, Fox news outlets covered presidential candidates more than any other source, while CBS was a close second. The contrasting patterns in horserace coverage are likely related to the candidate’s standing in the polls at the time of reporting. Reports about a candidate’s standing in the polls tend to be negative in tone when a candidate is slipping.
As the election gets closer, more Americans are following presidential candidates’ news and announcements closely. The public also watches appointments and staffing announcements, which can signal how aggressively the administration will pursue certain policies.
Traditionally, presidents held regular on-the-record press conferences where they could communicate directly to the public. Starting with the Kennedy administration, most of these press conferences were televised and held in prime time. Those who followed the news know that today’s presidents rarely hold these kinds of events. In our study, we counted each time a president or vice-president held a press conference that was aired on any major broadcast or cable network, or on a live Internet feed. The results are shown in the table below. We grouped the results by whether the event was a Solo-Reg, in which the President is alone, or a Prime-Time event, in which the president is joined by one or more other guests.