John Rash

Going Hi Def

tptadmin — Fri, 29 May 2009 16:59:58 -0500

Two more Twin Cities newscasts are going HD soon, WCCO is making the switch on Saturday. Media analyst extraordinaire John Rash talks about the economics of high definition television.

Olympic Ratings

tptadmin — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 15:53:44 -0500

Minnesota leads the nation in watching the Olympics on television. John Rash from Campbell Mithun stops by to explain who is watching the 2008 Summer Olympics and why.

2006 Slip of the Tongue Shapes Session 2007

John Rash — Mon, 4 Jun 2007 15:53:28 -0500

A popular bumper sticker from the 2004 presidential campaign simply stated: "November 2nd," signifying the date of the election and those displeased with the politics and policies of the Bush administration to change course.

Had that bumper sticker — and the election calendar — been in effect in 2006, the 2007 legislative session would have been decidedly different.

That's because the extra week in last year's election may have made the difference in this year's session as the gubernatorial outcome profoundly changed the potential direction of the North Star state. To be sure, as far as momentous media points in politics, Mike Hatch's media meltdown about the ethics of ethanol policy and reporters' loyalties doesn't compare with Ed Muskie's wet tears in the wet snows of 1972 New Hampshire, or even Thomas Dewey's rage against railroad workers that may have cost him some of the union vote and 1948 election. But as far as session 2007 goes, it still is the defining dynamic that resulted in near status quo.

Had Mr. Hatch won, it's likely the legislature would be looked at historically: Historically bad, of course, to many Republicans who would have watched taxes rise to pay for more state spending. Historically good, however, to DFLers hoping that Minnesota would regain its progressive position of investing in health care, transportation and education. The state would have been significantly different not only in 2007, but beyond, as the spending — and taxes — took root.

Instead, a stalemate that vexes voters and politicians alike now stands, as Minnesota again sits out any decisive action on the direction of the state. And it's likely to stay this way for the next several sessions, unless Governor Pawlenty tires to move from the Mississippi to the Potomac as a veep candidate for Senator McCain, or has other political ambitions. Right now, he benefits by emulating the sport he loves, as he plays defense as a goalie from whatever the DFL throws at him.

How the electorate responds in the future will depend on many factors, but the entire legislative grind may make it harder to recruit candidates from both sides, as well as those passionate about the political process, as voters may grow weary of the ordinary threats of special sessions, governmental shutdowns and little action in either direction.

So, the last few months were most affected by a few moments and a slip of the tongue — first by Judi Dutcher, then by Mike Hatch — that may be one of those accidents of history that may not only have framed Session 2007, but 2008 and beyond.

And after years of the legislature proposing and the governor disposing of new initiatives — including transit funding — there may be plenty of time to look for a new series of bumper stickers, including one supporting one party control — or a third party — to avoid a second decade of inaction.

Bowling Together

John Rash — Thu, 8 Feb 2007 08:21:45 -0600

Bowling alone, Harvard sociologist Robert Putnam warned in his famous book of the same name, was a sign of a deteriorating civil society, as he deemed the demise of organized bowling leagues a cultural canary-in-a-coalmine of America’s move away from communities and towards more isolating individualism.

But a few Fridays ago, Governor Pawlenty not only wasn’t bowling alone, he was with teams of Minnesotans coming together in a charity event (“Dave Lee’s Gutter Bowl” on WCCO) for the Leukemia and Lymphoma society.

Culturally, it was significant, because it indicates the center is holding, even in these particularly partisan times. Most Minnesotans still define themselves not by their political proclivities, but rather their personal passions. This includes bowling (we’re 33% more likely to bowl than the national average according to research from MRI) and charity, in which our state’s generosity is nationally known.

Politically, it’s significant as well. Those politicians who remember and reflect that voters need to see them as real people have more success in advancing issues for the real people they claim to serve.

At play, the governor played it up for the cameras, doing jumping jacks and pushups before bowling and then mixed it up with the crowd. Sure, it was political. But it was also personal, as he seemed to be genuinely having fun, not a word normally named by normal Minnesotans as part of the political process.

Campaign advisers and conventional wisdom makes most politicians so risk-averse that they risk becoming disconnected with how most Minnesotans live. This has been apparent not only on the state level but nationally as well, particularly in executive races.

Minnesota’s last four DFL gubernatorial candidates invoked many admirable adjectives — earnest and honest public servants — but Skip Humphrey, John Marty, Roger Moe and Mike Hatch wouldn’t have made many Minnesotan’s list of top invitees to a backyard barbeque. Governor Perpich, conversely, might have, as before he was “goofy” he was a real guy with real quirks from a real town on the range.

Indeed, Minnesotans have voted for more colorful candidates in the last several elections. The most glaring (and garish) example was Governor Ventura, who was seemingly elected solely because he eschewed blue suits and red ties for pink feather boas. Maroon and gold were Governor Carlson’s favorite colors, as his love of watching football, basketball and hockey at his beloved “U” was only topped by Governor Pawlenty actually playing hockey.

Nationally, the colorful character factor has also come into play, as Presidents Clinton and Bush both beat candidates who were long on resumes, but short on relatability. Prospective presidents are already trying to be the everyman (or woman) to everyone, with some coming across with JFK-like élan (Senator Barack Obama in the surf on a family vacation) or Al Gore stiffness (Mayor Guliani’s staged photo-op on the cover of the New York Post planting a kiss on his wife, which looked like Glamour Shots gone bad).

Of course, style should never replace substance. But the two aren’t mutually exclusive, and the politician who can rally the citizens by simply being one of them can have both.

The Media Covers - and May Become - the Story

John Rash — Fri, 12 Jan 2007 12:13:02 -0600

The media will not only report and reflect the 2007 session, but may also become part of the very story they're covering.

This particularly pertains to Governor Pawlenty, as the media took notice of him as a political player once he surfed through the national democratic tidal wave.

Locally, he's a well-known figure, but many conservatives are using partisan media to try to keep him that way. Beyond blogging and the normal partisanship that is old hat in new media, conservative talk radio in particular is holding his feet to the fire (if not in it), unleashing radio rage questioning his core conservative credentials.

Nationally, he's now a national figure, as a short-lister on Senator McCain's (and perhaps others') veep list. This has made his actions — and the 2007 session — a Minnesota microcosm of Potomac politics, as both the state and the nation share the same dynamics of a Republican executive and a newly elected Democratic legislature.

The New York Times took note in a December 29th front-page story about session 2007. Reporter Kirk Johnson filed his first in what will be an occasional series of articles examining North Star state government.

He gives the governor credit for a "sharp tongue and a sharper wit" and positions him as a "son of working-class South St. Paul," in a piece that indicates peace may be possible in a divided government, at least in Minnesota.

This is media manna for whatever national aspirations the state's governor has, but comes from the very publication many conservative commentators love to loathe.

To get glowing reviews and continually raise his profile as a GOP Governor who got the message from voters, Governor Pawlenty may continue the Minnesota moderation that fits public perceptions of his personality — if not his politics.

But this very tack left puts wind in the sails of right-leaning media back home, which may make his job harder and may erode his political appeal if he feels forced to protect his standing with his base voters and the session devolves from winter harmony to springtime acrimony.

To what degree he even listens to either the national or local media remains to be seen (or heard, or read).

But what they say about him will mean a lot — not just for the ongoing state session in 2007, but perhaps for the national election in 2008.

The media will not only report and reflect the 2007 session, but may also become part of the very story they're covering.

What I Would Like to See Lawmakers Accomplish

John Rash — Wed, 27 Dec 2006 13:25:48 -0600

Minnesota's keenest competition isn't South Dakota. It's South Korea — and all the other countries that shine brighter than the North Star state in global test scores, particularly in math and science.

The sooner the legislature coalesces around the reality that Minnesota competes in the global economy and has to educate and govern accordingly, the better chance of a substantive, substantial session, as opposed to the test of wills between a republican governor and a democratic house and senate.

This well-needed paradigm shift is part personal and part political. Culturally, the Lake Woebegon "every child being above average" is held by the average Minnesotan, which creates social cohesion, but social complacency as well, as this feel-good factor is in comparison to other states, not other countries. This "Minnesota Exceptionalism" is grounded in a high high-school graduation rate and civic participation, particularly in voting.

But the result of this voting — state elected officials — should have as a measurable objective to be not the brainpower state, but the global brainpower center, with an educational system driving economic and social development for decades.

The good news is this can be a bipartisan goal, which is an imperative in a divided government. The bad news is that so much legislative attention has been diverted by divisive social issues and partisan politics.

But on the state level, education is not an issue; it's the issue. And in a divided government, it cuts across the political fault lines of gender, generation and geography, let alone socioeconomic strata. Every Minnesotan benefits if the state has the smartest students in the world.

Indeed, with technology making business location more malleable, the state has much at stake right now (we're not selling the weather). But key politicians also have much at stake, with the governor at minimum trying to leave a legacy, if not leave as a Vice Presidential candidate. And with a near-quarter-century inability to elect a governor, the DFL needs to govern from the legislative branch and prove to the voters they deserve the mandate they were rewarded with on November 7.

Not every solution need be a new law nor associated with a tax increase. And much of the approach may not only address education, but infrastructure, public safety and transportation/transit as well.

But these are strategies and tactics. What's needed is to truly think global and act local, with a legislatively mandated objective.

Tough Week for Twin Cities Dailies

richard — Fri, 1 Dec 2006 04:45:17 -0600

The Pioneer Press is losing 21 veteran staffers ... the Strib is investigating possible plagiarism. Two topics we'll ask Jane Kirtley and John Rash about. Kirtley is a prof at the U of M Journalism School. Rash follows media as a Sr. Veep at the Campbell Mithun ad agency.