PEJ Talk Show Index: December 2 - 7, 2007: Talk Hosts React to Romney

Report Read time:
PEJ Talk Show Index: December 2 - 7, 2007: Talk Hosts React to Romney

According to MSNBC Hardball host Chris Matthews, Mitt Romney's Dec. 6 speech trying to reassure voters about his Mormon religion represented nothing less that “the biggest political risk of his career.”

With polls showing Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee—who touts himself as a “Christian leader”—vaulting past Romney in Iowa, the former Massachusetts Governor delivered a speech about faith and politics that invited comparisons to John F. Kennedy's 1960 address dealing with his Roman Catholic faith.

Kennedy's address, now widely regarded as a political triumph, was delivered in an era when most Americans got their news and commentary once a day from the daily paper or the nightly network newscast. Romney's speech was delivered in an era of instantaneous, ubiquitous punditry, and the reviews rolled in fast and furious.

Read the full article Talk Hosts React to Romney on Religion on the Project for Excellence in Journalism Web site.

MORE FROM PEW

A presentation being given by a businesswoman to a group of participants at a business conference. Four Plan Features Can Boost 'Retirement Readiness'
A large group of people in formal or traditional attire stands together on a stage, with a digital background depicting marine life and the large text “WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies.” WTO Needs to Redouble Its Effort on Fishing Subsidies
A man in a winter hat and sunglasses kneels on a rocky shoreline in front of a campfire, holding a metal mug with gloved hands. Behind him, in the water, a motorboat is moored to the shore. Cliffs rise on both sides of the water. Why Newfoundland’s South Coast Fjords Are Sacred
An illustration of a couple holding hands walking away from an outline of houses behind them Pathways to Homeownership: Housing in America