NYT: Tea Party Has Time to Shape Perceptions

[BurtWorm]

"WE'RE NOT CRAZY!"


http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/15/tea-party-has-time-to-shape-perceptions/

September 15, 2010, 1:56 pm
Tea Party Has Time to Shape Perceptions
By DALIA SUSSMAN

Christine O’Donnell’s win in last night’s Republican primary for United States Senate in Delaware shines another bright spotlight on the Tea Party movement, prompting the question: What impact will it have in a general election?

A new New York Times/CBS News poll finds views of the Tea Party movement are mixed, with 23 percent of registered voters viewing it favorably and 29 percent unfavorably. But nearly half of voters say they are undecided or haven’t heard enough about the Tea Party movement yet to have an opinion.

That can be a blessing for Tea Party activists: It provides them with the opportunity to define the movement to many voters and help shape their views of it between now and Election Day –- a much easier task than having to change views that are already established. But at the same time, it also gives opponents an opening to define the movement (in a highly negative light) for them.

Close to half of Republican voters, 48 percent, say they have a favorable opinion of the movement, while nearly all the rest say they have no opinion yet of it. Among independent voters –- a group that will be critical for the Tea Party’s success in November –- more have a negative view of the movement than a positive one (18 percent favorable, 30 percent unfavorable), but most have no opinion.

...

[Blue Owl]

1. That photo just shaped my perceptions some more

They're even MORE undesirable and out-of-touch with reality.

[spanone]

2. is that terry jones pre-diet?

[DJ13]

3. The MSM hopes they change perceptions

The thought that the GOP might not be in charge of one House of Congress next year scares them to death.

[BeyondGeography]

4. The Times is always there with an encouraging word for the loons who despise them

:dunce:

[gratuitous]

5. And a responsibility-free excuse

"Gee, people don't seem to know how bugfuck crazy the Tea Baggers are! They have time to shape the public's perception." I'd say that's more of an indictment of the Times and other popular media outlets than anything that could be said by or about the Tea Baggers.

[gkhouston]

6. The tea party? Those loud-mouthed yahoos who were all over the TV during

the health care "debates" a year ago? Oh, I don't think people have forgotten that, but nice try.