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February 09, 2012 12:00 AM UTC

FOX 31's Eli Stokols Rips Romney: "It Didn't Have To Be This Way"

  • 24 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

A truly remarkable open letter sent today from lead political correspondent Eli Stokols of FOX 31 News to Mitt Romney’s campaign, in the aftermath of Romney’s unexpected defeat in Colorado’s GOP presidential caucus yesterday. Stokols has a theory worth considering:

Sure, you might still give Republicans their best chance to win Colorado come November — something that GOP caucuses, closed to the one-third of Coloradans who are registered independents, may not accurately reflect.

But your brand is now significantly tarnished in a critical swing state, one you seemed to have in your grasp.

And, honestly, it didn’t have to be this way…

This TV station, like many of our Denver competitiors, I’m sure, sent you multiple requests to interview Gov. Romney.

You didn’t respond.

I’ve heard you did take some questions from the media Saturday in Colorado Springs, which, based on your showing there, didn’t do you a whole lot of good.

When it came to talking to the Denver media, you gave us the silent treatment. Sure, we showed up at your rallies anyway and heard you spouting the same, tired talking points again and again.

We’ve talked a few times now about the local media’s abdication of responsibility when it came to accurately covering the often extreme statements of GOP presidential primary candidates this week. We cited examples from two papers, namely the Denver Post and the Durango Herald, publishing night-and-day different stories about the same speeches from Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich–based on the Herald choosing to cover what the candidates actually said.

Obviously that’s a big problem, but not the problem Stokols describes here with Mitt Romney’s campaign. Stokols’ point is about a candidate so obsessed with control over his image that he appears in-state, commits major gaffes and is subject to attacks from his opponents, but never engages with the local media in a way that might result in, as Stokols says in his letter, “a chance to humanize your candidate.” If anything, Stokols is being more accommodating than we would prefer: it’s not the press’s job to “humanize” a candidate, that’s the candidate’s job.

But there are limits to what even an accommodating press can do when you’re hiding from them.

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24 thoughts on “FOX 31’s Eli Stokols Rips Romney: “It Didn’t Have To Be This Way””

  3. R.Money opens his mouth and out comes “I don’t worry about poor people” and he loses voters; R.Money keeps his yap shut, .  .  . and he loses voters.

    Things aren’t supposed to be this difficult for rich kids .  .  .

  4. I have to agree with Eli Stokols’s letter.  He is right.  No presidential candidate, including the president, can afford to take any part of the electorate for granted in 2012.  There is too much at stake.

  5. An arrogant candidate? A very arrogant Republican candidate?

    Remember Mittens had Colorado as a lock because he is a Mormon and the temple was supporting him. Maybe they had the wrong date?

  6. http://www.politico.com/blogs/…

    The blog’s media guy reposts Eli’s letter and gives some background, including the hard-to-believe story about the Romney campaign charging reports $4K to fly on his plane. Any media types out there who know about this- standard procedure, unheard of, anything?

  7. He avoided the press as much as possible and just had scripted events that were then replayed on the “news.” But I think it’s changed, the voters truly want to learn more about the candidates.

    ps – I asked all 4 for an interview too.

  9. Romney was on the Caplis and Silverman show multiple times and his wife was on, too. I think he also appeared on  other right wing radio shows, but I am not sure.

    Isn’t radio,broadcast over the public airwaves, considered media anymore?

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