If you’ve been to a horse race, then you know how important it is. There’s so much pressure to win, and the stakes are so high. You can bet on a winning horse or watch a great show. The political press is also a big fan of the sport, and they love to watch the horses. They’ll chart the position of the 2020 presidential candidates and chart the races’ pace. Nevertheless, critics of horse race coverage sound the usual condemnations.
While most people have no idea what a horse race is, the media is increasingly covering the races and the candidates. While this form of coverage is not yet as common in other western democracies, it is growing in popularity. As the field grows, so too do the demands placed on horse racing coverage. There’s never been a better time to cover the horses, whether it’s for a political party, the Olympics, or the Super Bowl.
When covering the presidential race, journalists use metaphors that connect to the campaign. When a candidate is in the lead, the media focuses on his character and image. The political race is similar to an endless policy white paper if the candidates had no political strategy. Using the horse race as a metaphor for the election can be dangerous, as it risks focusing attention on beauty over substance. Nonetheless, the media can’t afford to lose sight of the fact that the election isn’t just about winning a race.
While horse race coverage is a shrewd way to focus on the race, it can have a counterproductive effect. Instead of focusing on the candidates’ character and their image, horse race coverage tends to focus on the frontrunners in the race. The media also focuses attention on their image. While the coverage of the horse-race results is more accurate than most, this approach can lead to a biased or unreliable interpretation of polling data.
The political coverage of the horse race often involves a more subtle and less effective metaphor. It may appear to be an unintended consequence of the media’s obsession with the race. The media is obsessed with the frontrunners, and the horse race metaphor encourages this tendency. Rather than focusing on the candidates’ character and image, it focuses on the candidates’ appearances. This approach is also detrimental to the campaign itself, as it causes more confusion than it can help to reach the audience.
The history of horse racing is long and varied. It was practiced in ancient Greece, Rome, and Babylon, and has a place in mythology. The Annapolis Maryland Gazette reported the race and called it a “great” race. Many of the jockeys in the era were slaves. The average weight of a horse in the horse race at that time was about 140 pounds. This weight included the jockey and riding tack.