Media Reaction from Obama's "A More Perfect Union Speech"

Yesterday, Obama sought to quell a political firestorm ignited when news outlets called attention to sermons by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright at Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, which the Illinois senator attended for two decades. I thought his speech was quite eloguent when he said, "We have a choice in this country. We can accept a politics that breeds division, and conflict, and cynicism," and he said "Or, at this moment, in this election, we can come together and say, 'Not this time."'

I was impressed that the evening news on all three of the major networks led with the story with CBS, NBC and ABC doing a panel follow-up to Obama's speech weighing in on the importance that America and the candidates for President address this issue.

Wright, who retired recently, has railed that the September 11 attacks were retribution for U.S. foreign policy, called the government the source of the AIDS virus and expressed anger over what he called racist America.

"I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community," Obama, who would be the first African-American president, said in a major speech about race in America.

The speech was entitled "A More Perfect Union," a line from the preamble to the U.S. Constitution that Abraham Lincoln cited in 1861 in arguing against the country splitting apart into North and South.

Flare-ups over race have roiled the campaign trail as Obama battles for the Democratic nomination with New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, who would be the first woman president. They are vying for the right to face Republican candidate John McCain in the November election.

Obama said Wright's remarks were not simply controversial but instead "expressed a profoundly distorted view of this country -- a view that sees white racism as endemic."

Obama said his own life as the son of a black man from Kenya and a white woman from Kansas had seared into his makeup the idea that racial divisions can be overcome. "It's a racial stalemate we've been stuck in for years," he said. "But I have asserted a firm conviction -- a conviction rooted in my faith in God and my faith in the American people -- that working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds."

RACE AND GENDER IN THE MEDIA
Clinton told reporters in Philadelphia she did not see or read Obama's speech but was glad he gave it. "These are difficult issues and we have seen that in this campaign. Race and gender are difficult issues. And therefore we need to have more discussion about them," she said.

Last week, Geraldine Ferraro, a Clinton supporter and 1984 vice presidential candidate, attributed Obama's lead in the Democratic race to his being black.
Obama said the race discussion took a divisive turn when it was implied "my candidacy is somehow an exercise in affirmative action; that it's based solely on the desire of wide-eyed liberals to purchase racial reconciliation on the cheap."
Blacks took offense when Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton, in January compared Obama's victory in the South Carolina primary to success there by Jesse Jackson, a black candidate who ran for president in 1984 and 1988. Critics saw the remarks as a bid to marginalize Obama as a candidate only for black America.

But Bill Clinton told television interviewers on Monday it was a "myth" that his wife's campaign had engaged in racial politics in the Southern state where he said he "never said a bad word about Senator Obama -- not one."
In his speech, Obama clearly disagreed.

"We saw racial tensions bubble to the surface during the week before the South Carolina primary," he said.
(Additional reporting by Reuters Andy Sullivan and Jeff Mason, writing by Steve Holland, editing by Chris Wilson) (To read more about the U.S. political campaign, visit Reuters "Tales from the Trail: 2008" online at http://blogs.reuters.com/trail08/)

OTHER RELATED MEDIA COVERAGE
1.
Church: Obama ex-pastor is under unfair attack CNN.com - Mar 17 9:06 AM
The Rev. Jeremiah Wright's former church criticized the news media Sunday for coverage of his sermons, saying in a statement that Wright's "character is being assassinated in the public sphere."
2.
Charles Warner: The Media Gets a B on Last Week's News Coverage HuffingtonPost - Mar 17 6:09 PM
The media last week did not mention the presidential campaign of the perennial spoiler and egomaniac. If they don't utter his name, maybe both R.N.'s candidacy and he will go away.
3.
Scratching Obama's Teflon Washington Post - Mar 18 5:59 PM During a campaign stop in Ohio last week, ABC's Jake Tapper asked Barack Obama about what he called "an attempt by conservatives and Republicans to paint you as unpatriotic."
4.
Democrats’ Media Narrative Roiled By Racial Tensions Journalism.org - Mar 17 7:16 PM Maybe the good news for Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama last week was that the problems of another Democrat—Eliot Spitzer—generated almost as much media attention as they did.
5.
Obama to deliver speech on race, ex-pastor Sports Illustrated - Mar 18 6:24 AM Sen. Barack Obama, who has mostly avoided focusing on race during his campaign, is delivering a major speech on the issue Tuesday after spending the weekend on the defensive over racially charged statements from his former minister.
6.
Obama's Speech Opens New Conversation on Race and Politics The Online NewsHour - Mar 18 5:43 PM Sen. Barack Obama delivered a speech on racial divisions in the U.S Tuesday in a bid to address both controversy over remarks made by his former pastor and the role of race on campaign trail. A panel of analysts reflects on Obama's speech, race and politics.
7.
Clinton leads, Obama pleads Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - Mar 18 12:29 PM
Can Obama overcome his former pastor to win in Pennsylvania, and in November?
8.
Obama speech on pastor and race gets mixed reviews in West Michigan The Kalamazoo Gazette - Mar 18 3:42 PM The Rev. Doug VanDoren has an optimist's perspective on Illinois Sen. Barack Obama's speech on race and his controversial pastor. Healthcare worker Dave Benson offers another, more skeptical view.
9.
Divinity school at TCU still plans to honor Obama pastor Houston Chronicle - Mar 18 1:52 AM Controversy surrounding the longtime minister of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is not deterring a Texas divinity school from honoring the Rev. Jeremiah Wright at a ceremony later this month.
10.
Church accuses media of 'crucifixion' The Politico - Mar 16 11:18 AM
Obama's church calls coverage of Rev. Wright "an attack on ... the history of the African-American church."