Mitt Romney's anti-media hostility: Will it backfire?
The longtime GOP frontrunner got away with sidestepping reporters at first. These days, not so much

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Mitt Romney has gotten a lot of grief lately for "ducking reporters," says Marc Caputo at The Miami Herald. One of Romney's rivals for the Republican presidential nomination, Jon Huntsman, even released a "Scared Mittless" ad online, poking fun at Romney's decision to avoid one-on-one interviews with mainstream reporters. It's not hard to see why Mitt ducks the press: His prickly interview last week with Fox News anchor Bret Baier led to days of damaging headlines, and caused his aides to go "into defensive mode" over the weekend, when they shielded Romney from a New York Times reporter who showed up backstage at a forum hosted by Mike Huckabee. Is Romney's aversion to the media starting to do him more harm than good?
Yes. Romney's strategy is backfiring: "If you have a gaffe-prone candidate or one who can't readily express his views," says Jennifer Rubin at The Washington Post, you might want to shield him from reporters. But when you have a knowledgeable, articulate guy like Romney, you should let him speak for himself. If Romney had more interviews under his belt, "he might have been more relaxed" during his disastrous encounter with Bret Baier.
"Romney needs to revise his approach to the media"
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Actually, the recent clashes have helped Romney: That so-called "bad interview" on Fox might have been just what Romney needed, says Kathryn Jean Lopez at National Review. Romney is "routinely caricatured as a robot," but when he got peeved at Baier's line of questioning, he "showed an emotional side" and "tapped into the frustration a lot of people have with politics." The exchange actually allowed Romney to refute the charge that he's a flip-flopper and explain his "winning" conservative message.
To win, Romney has to talk with reporters: In 2008, Mitt was "completely accessible," says Steve Benen at Washington Monthly. That's because he "was eager to raise his national profile." Now that he's a known quantity, Romney has gone to "the other extreme," preferring to let rivals sink themselves while Mitt avoids saying anything that might upset his frontrunner status. But the political press will only put up with being ignored for so long, and now that he's locked in a dual with Newt Gingrich, Romney's media aversion is morphing from "an oddity to a problem." Unless he starts opening up, Romney is inviting "a backlash."
"The press doesn't like being ignored"
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
Positive evidence
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 26, 2023
Daily Briefing Congress returns to work with shutdown looming, Ukraine says it killed Russia's Black Sea Fleet commander, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
Why the Roman Empire is suddenly everywhere online
The Explainer It fell more than 1,500 years ago — so why is it dominating social media?
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Trump surrenders in Georgia election subversion case
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries chosen to succeed Pelosi as leader of House Democrats
Speed Read
By Brigid Kennedy Published
-
GOP leader Kevin McCarthy's bid for House speaker may really be in peril
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Are China's protests a real threat for Beijing?
opinion The sharpest opinions on the debate from around the web
By Harold Maass Published
-
Who is Nick Fuentes, the white nationalist who dined with Trump and Kanye?
Speed Read From Charlottesville to Mar-a-Lago in just five years
By Rafi Schwartz Published
-
Jury convicts Oath Keepers Stewart Rhodes, Kelly Meggs of seditious conspiracy in landmark Jan. 6 verdict
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
A look at the White House's festive and homey holiday decor
Speed Read
By Brigid Kennedy Published
-
Bob Iger addresses 'Don't Say Gay' bill, says inclusion is part of Disney's values
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published