Media Watch by Jill Abramson

Harris' Troubled Relations with the Press

In the weeks since President Biden’s withdrawal and her elevation to the top of the Democratic ticket, Kamala Harris has ducked the press. There have been no press conferences or searching interviews. So, I went searching myself for answers to the
question: Why is Harris so press adverse?

With the adoring coverage she’s received since being catapulted to be the Democrats’
presidential nominee, the question seems more than a little perplexing. But it is easy
to forget that along with her political status, the way she is portrayed in the press has
also undergone a dramatic transformation. It was only a few months ago that there
were stories about Democrats urging that she be dumped as Joe Biden’s running-mate and viewing her record as Vice President as so dismal that she was a drag on the ticket.

Now, the cameras love her and she does seem like a charming Natural gliding into
her party’s convention hall in Chicago. What explains the turnaround? Surely,
her party’s immense relief at having the aging, ailing 81-year-old Biden gone is a big
part of it. But, clearly, her political gifts have also been under-estimated by the national
reporters who cover her. It was true that her 2020 campaign for President was a total
disaster, a free-spending mess riven by staff turnover and that her handling of her
assigned portfolio of issues as Vice- President, including the border, was far from successful. Nonetheless, it’s clear that she’s pulled off a dazzling makeover, for the
moment at least. And the enthusiasm for her, especially among younger voters,
women and Blacks, is very real and enough to have moved the poll numbers in key states to a virtual draw with Donald Trump.