The Chronicle’s Fetish with Republicans

If you want to know why the SF Chronicle is going under, look at its current obsession with the GOP gubernatorial primary – and the unwarranted front-page coverage it receives. In a deep blue state like California, no Republican (save for a Hollywood action hero) can be elected Governor – making its June 2010 primary the Golden State equivalent of winning a gag prize. But in the past five weeks, the Chronicle has had five front-page articles about statewide Republican politics – with three pieces on gubernatorial hopeful Meg Whitman. The paper’s right-wing columnist Debra Saunders also wrote a profile on Whitman in January, called “The Woman Who Would Be Governator.” Does anyone seriously believe that a former John McCain campaign aide can get elected Governor – in a state that Obama carried by three million votes? Republican leaders aren’t popular these days, and a recent poll shows that even Republicans are turning against their leaders in Washington. The Chronicle seems to acknowledge this, as yesterday’s front-page explored the right-wing sectarian battle going on within the state Republican Party – as if it still mattered.

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