- The Invisible Primary-Invisible No Longer - Panel proposed to balance research, security Patrice McDermott, Director OpenTheGovernment.org www.openthegovernment.org 202.332.OPEN (6736) - THE INVISIBLE PRIMARY-INVISIBLE NO LONGER -- A First Look at Coverage of the 2008 Presidential Campaign A study by the Project for Excellence in Journalism and the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy October 29, 2007 In the early months of the 2008 presidential campaign, the media had already winnowed the race to mostly five candidates and offered Americans relatively little information about their records or what they would do if elected, according to a comprehensive new study of the election coverage across the media. In all, 63% of the campaign stories focused on political and tactical aspects of the campaign. That is nearly four times the number of stories about the personal backgrounds of the candidates (17%) or the candidates' ideas and policy proposals (15%). And just 1% of stories examined the candidates' records or past public performance, the study found. The press' focus on fundraising, tactics and polling is even more evident if one looks at how stories were framed rather than the topic of the story. Just 12% of stories examined were presented in a way that explained how citizens might be affected by the election, while nearly nine-out-of-ten stories (86%) focused on matters that largely impacted only the parties and the candidates. Those numbers, incidentally, match almost exactly the campaign-centric orientation of coverage found on the eve of the primaries eight years ago. more *** - Panel proposed to balance research, security By Aliya Sternstein National Journal's Technology Daily October 29, 2007 The National Academies is recommending that the government establish a science and security commission to strike a balance between freely exchanging unclassified research with foreigners and controlling information that terrorists might use against the United States. Public-access experts said the report's findings are consistent with previous reports on science and national security but reflect more current issues like collaboration with foreign scientists and export controls. The idea of a separate commission also is new. The commission would be housed within the National Security Council and co-chaired by the national security adviser and the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Appointees would include university administrators, along with representatives from federal research agencies and national security agencies. more [National Journal via GovExec] Link: Report