Newsweek‘s current cover story and associated columns reminded me that I wanted to make the following prediction, well in advance of the fight for the presidency in 2008.
I am almost 100 percent certain that we will see at least one of the following story lines in the national media at some point in 2008:
- Americans are not ready for a woman as president.
- Americans are not ready for a black president.
If neither Hillary Clinton nor Barack Obama wins, we will likely see both story lines.
Why? Because media outlets will equate votes for and against Sens. Clinton and Obama as votes for and against their gender and skin color — respectively — rather than votes for or against their policy positions.
Producers and editors will be able to employ a simple story line (see above) rather than a more accurate, but complex story line: Americans are willing to vote for a (black/woman) president, but they don’t want a president whose policy ideas they can’t support.
