is this a media-manipulated election?

I'm about sick of having to see this election and the candidates the way the media want me to. I am a Democrat, so most of this comes from the Democratic side. The media seem to love Barack, and so they dis everyone else because it gets in the way of a "good story". Barck is good copy, african-american, humble beginnings, articulate, charismatic, he may even be the best choice for President, but we're not getting an even-handed chance to decide.

Hillary is just "old news" compared to Barack, and she gets characterized as such. Every attempt on her part to get traction is dismissed as "old Clinton tactics" or race-based. In short, it gets in the way of the Barack story. New Hampshire was so inconvenient that all the pundits and press seem to feel obliged to find a reason to diminish her win (white folks turned into bigots in the privacy of a polling booth).

As for Edwards (who was my first favorite), well, since he attacks "corporate America" and the media is OWNED by "corporate America", he seems to live in limbo with only a fraction of the coverage given Barack and Hillary and little serious examination of his policies. Also, the media seems to only be able to get its head around a "one on one" contest, and Edwards doesn't fit there.

Also, why has none of the media mentioned the outburst at the Las Vegas debate when the audience member shouted about "race based" questions early on? I was happy to hear it. The questioning troubled me and seemed like it was for agitation to "brew up a fight". It was the most obvious example to me of the media's attempt to set the tone and the agenda fo the debate

They are all 3 great candidates to me, and I think any one of them will be far better than what the Republicans have to offer, but I sure wish I had the luxury of a thorough, objective presentation of them to help my decision.

hello to all

Hello,
I guess the current U.S. Presidential campaign brought me here. I am sick of the "media packaged" campaign that seems so prevalent this year, and I'm looking for a way to go beyond it and find out about and talk about the facts. I am "left libertarian", and so the Democratic candidates interest me more. This is my first attemot to navigate the "blogosphere", but here goes.
See ya soon.