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in smaller cities where campaign stops are still relatively big news. 29
Other than The Onion, where the
candidate’s “Google Problem” originated, no source outside of Iowa gave Santorum even one tenth of the
overall primary coverage, but again it must be kept in mind that this media push into the Iowan second tier
would have evaporated if Santorum hadn’t been physically present in each of the state’s counties at one point
in the campaign. Whether or not these efforts were enough to improve their perceived viability among likely
voters, as may still be dubious, this does at least show that even smaller media outlets aim to influence
national events and may be vital to certain campaign strategies.
Type of Sources (N) Johnson Huntsman Santorum Bachmann Perry Paul
Broadcast Networks (10) 0.21% 2.10% 1.90% 9.84% 10.72% 10.61%
Major News Agencies (6) 0.18% 2.51% 1.48% 8.48% 16.86% 4.67%
Big City Newspapers (29) 0.05% 1.49% 1.17% 4.25% 10.23% 4.14%
Florida Newspapers (5) 0.07% 1.43% 2.60% 2.61% 4.93% 1.87%
IA NH SC Newspapers (39) 0.86% 4.13% 5.40% 10.56% 12.44% 15.47%
Fig. 6: Are Second and Third-Tier Candidates’ Media Coverage Higher in the Small Markets of the Earliest Primaries? Note that the
newspapers in the Florida sample are all from big cities.
Partisan sites are, not surprisingly, more concerned about speculative candidates, often encouraging a
particular individual to join the race. Coverage of Sarah Palin, Chris Christie, Paul Ryan, and perhaps others
with higher national profiles than third-tier declared candidates was found to be greater in conservative
websites.
Type of Sources (N) Johnson Huntsman Santorum Bachmann Cain Palin Christie Ryan
Liberal (27) 0.58% 1.39% 1.08% 5.67% 11.02% 3.14% 0.88% 1.65%
Conservative (89) 0.85% 2.61% 3.32% 6.88% 16.55% 11.17% 3.03% 6.67%
Non-Partisan (133) 0.90% 2.61% 3.20% 7.91% 27.85% 17.03% 1.58% 1.47%
Fig. 7: Unknown In or Well-Known Out? Speculation about some non-candidates received about as much coverage as third-tier
declared candidates. Note also the alignment of Bachmann, Cain, and Palin’s coverage in terms of getting the most attention in nonpartisan
media, possibly for their sensational personas?
Media coverage of longshot candidates is approximately in line with their low polling numbers and
national profiles. How do they compare with candidates receiving similar levels of coverage in the general
29 As APPENDIX C suggests, there should be less contrast of why Santorum’s Iowa strategy worked while Huntsman’s “failed” in New
Hampshire than that both devoted themselves to maximizing their votes in these early contests, ultimately winning in Santorum’s case
and vastly outperforming what national polls and mass media coverage would have led one to expect in both cases.
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