The Daily Gamecock

Lead the Way tackles the influence of media on politics

The University of South Carolina Lead the Way organization held a media and politics panel in the Russell House Ballroom Tuesday. The panel consisted of Matt Moore, Hadas Gold, Charles Bierbauer and Amanda Loveday, who spoke on the effect of media on politics. Reporters: Ali Mullane, Carson Mason

The role of media in modern politics and the importance of identifying media bias were the main points of emphasis at Lead The Way’s Media in Politics forum Tuesday night. Various political media experts and journalists gathered to discuss the evolution of political media and the impact of social media on political campaigns.

“This is the social media campaign, in ways that we have not seen previously,” said Charles Bierbauer, Dean of the College of Information and Communication, describing the transformation of the modern campaign trail. He also commented on the advantages of campaigning on social media, saying that “politicians have long wanted a means of getting around the journalists to reach the voters in an unfiltered process,” and therefore they “much prefer [social media].” 

The panel included Hadas Gold, reporter from Politico, Amanda Loveday, former communications director for South Carolina Congressman Jim Clyburn, and Matt Moore, chairman of the South Carolina Republican party.

All four representatives encouraged the students in attendance to explore a wide range of media outlets. “I try to see things from a different perspective ... If you’re not aware of your biases, you start building off these presuppositions about politics,” said Moore, responding to a student looking to become politically educated. 

Audience participation was strong at the event. Students showed no reservation in taking the mic to ask questions about the media coverage of the 2016 campaign. Attendance at Tuesday’s forum was significantly higher than the previous forum, perhaps spurred by the first presidential debate on Monday night.

Lead The Way hopes to continue progressing towards its goal of registering 5,000 voters prior to the South Carolina voter registration deadline on Oct. 8. The organization proudly reported registering 2,000 voters since its initiative began. Lead The Way will continue with its efforts with upcoming forums on women in politics and national security.


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