Who Will Win the Battle of the News Cycles?

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Monday September 25, 2006 · 6:31 AM PDT

2006/09/25 · 06:31

In the closing weeks of the campaign season, the White House has begun its final battle to control the daily news cycle and gain the high ground in the traditional media. The stakes are high -- he who controls the news cycle controls the perception of millions of members of his own base. And he who control perception, controls reality. The same thing works on the Democratic base: if our morale goes down because we think the Republicans are turning the tide, it could affect turnout in November.

Last week, the White House promoted the stories of crazy Chavez and evil Ahmadinejad battling gallant Bush at the UN. That was followed by the rumor that Osama had eaten some bad spinach and was no more. Lastly, the White House touted the "torture compromise" and how they "relented" to the Republican "rebels" in the Senate. His base takes heart, while some in our base are discouraged, if even for just a moment or two.

This week opens with Bush grieving in private for the tens of thousands of war casualties that he caused. Oh, noble, sensitive, Dear Leader! No doubt we'll also get some more warnings about TNT -- terror and taxes -- and how the Democrats will destroy our security and prosperity if they gain the majority in November.

Unfortunately, the Democrats do not have the advantage in the news cycle wars because they literally do not have a single spokesman. But stories do get out: there is is toxic report that the NIE is saying that terrorism has gotten worse because of the war in Iraq. And don't underestimate the effect of Clinton's CGI followed by his pushback on Fox News. There are other stories, but you get the picture. Our base gets fired up by those stories.

Obviously, there's a lot at stake: Bush's numbers have risen whenever the White House pushes its narrative; and that alone becomes a story that can control a news cycle. So think of Bush as a parrot with a ball and chain attached to his leg. He can flap his wings for a while and get airborne. But eventually the ball brings him back to earth, exhausted, until the next try.

But there is a more important analogy, one that the White House would surely acknowledge: Bush is on a see-saw along with the Democrats. Sometimes he's up and the Democrats are down; and vice-versa. The only thing that matters is this -- who will get off the see-saw first?

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