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October 27, 2004

Slate votes for Kerry

For the last two presidential elections, MSN's Slate Magazine has posted the results of how its employees (both editorial and business) planned to vote in the coming election. Last time, more than three quarters of Slate staffers voted for Gore. This year, Slatesters voted even more lopsidedly for Kerry, who got nearly 9 out of every 10 votes. (See the table below for more details.)

Votes%
2004
Kerry4388%
Bush36%
Other / Neither36%
TOTAL       
49100%
2000
Gore2777%
Bush411%
Nader / Other411%
TOTAL       
35100%

I was not surprised by the hefty margin of victory for the Democrat candidate; many, many polls and surveys have found that journalists (like most urban intellectuals living on the coasts) tilt heavily towards the Democratic Party. What I find refreshing, however, is that Slate is upfront about disclosing the personal views of its writers, editors and contributors. It also helps that Slate is largely a journal of opinion and makes no pretense of being an objective source of "news."

I would love to see the MSM (main stream media) adopt similar disclosure policies. (I know, dream on...)

October 27, 2004 at 03:08 PM | Permalink

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Comments

I'd wish for something one step farther:

Each reporter and producer should have a public biography page which includes _their_ view on the topics of the day. As a minimum, consider the list of items on both the Republican and Democratic official Party Planks.

Like:
I consider a balanced budget a key component of a healthy economy, only a state of war or a congressionally recognized national emergency override this priority.

Posted by: Alan Blue | Oct 27, 2004 3:58:50 PM

Dear Alan:

That is a very interesting idea. Maybe I should make one for myself, in the interests of full disclosure and all... Want to develop a list of issues that should be addressed? If you do, I'll promise to post my views on 'em.

Spart

Posted by: Spartacus | Oct 27, 2004 4:35:23 PM

I wanted to start by going down the itemized 'party planks', but those were irritating. ;)

Let's see.

Abortion.
Gay Marriage.
Activist Judges.
Enumeration clause/States rights
Second Amendment.
First Amendment - free practice.
First Amendment - no establishment.
Welfare/Nanny state.
Property rights/zoning/conservation
Immigration.
Tort reform
Health care
Education (Charter schools, vouchers, standards testing)
Energy policy
Environmental concerns
Affirmative Action
Unions
Income tax
Sales tax

Free trade
United Nations
The use of military force.

Posted by: Alan Blue | Oct 28, 2004 4:30:14 AM

This is a great idea. How about a rating system for all pundits and talking heads indicating their position on the political spectrum, from 1 (far left) to 10 (far right)? Michael Moore would be a 1, Pat Buchanan a 10, and the rest of us would be somewhere in between. (I'd place myself at 7.5 on the political Richter scale.)

Posted by: abellow | Oct 28, 2004 11:57:08 AM

Alan:

I've taken some liberties with your list, as you can see below.

I also like Adam's idea, though I how would you possibly scale people? The problem with a political "Richter scale" or spectrum is that political opinions tend to array themselves along more than one dimension. (For example, see this well-known 2-dimensional political model: http://www.self-gov.org/quiz.html)

Anyway, here's a cut on relevant issues: · Social and Moral Issueso Abortion
Gay Marriage
Welfare and the family
Stem cells
School prayer
FCC / obscenity
Economic Issues
Unions
Income tax
Sales tax
Free trade / outsourcing
Minimum wage
Deficits
Social Security
Defense and Foreign Policy Issues
United Nations and multilateral organizations
UN reform
Is there a “global test?”
Draft / National Service
Preemption doctrine
Military spending
Missile defense
Specific conflicts / Issues
Iraq
Middle East
Taiwan
Iran
North Korea
Law and Constitutional Rights Issues
Activist Judges
Enumeration clause/States rights
Second Amendment
First Amendment - free practice
First Amendment - no establishment
Property rights, zoning, takings
Tort reform
Affirmative Action
Environment and Energy Issues
Mining, drilling and logging on government land
Kyoto / global warming
Regulation
Education Issues
Charter schools
Vouchers
Standards and testing
Health Care Issues
Uninsured
Role of private insurance
Malpractice and liability
Drug reimportation
Government role
Tax deductibility of medical and insurance expenses
Funding for health care
Research spending
Government as provider of services

Posted by: Spartacus | Oct 28, 2004 8:42:39 PM

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