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ProSense

(116,464 posts)
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 02:33 PM Mar 2014

Krugman: The ACA Surge Blackout

The ACA Surge Blackout

It’s not in itself that big a deal, but I’m somewhat amazed by what amounts to a de facto blackout by major news media on a developing story that’s really obvious if you read the invaluable Charles Gaba, or even the White House blog: a huge surge in Obamacare enrollments in the final days of the signup period. The print sources I read are still putting out basically downbeat reports about the ACA, with maybe a mention 10 paragraphs in that exchange enrollments passed the 6 million mark last week. I don’t watch cable news, but from what I hear it’s all still Malaysian airways.

In the end, I guess it won’t matter in a direct sense; the final number for year 1, which looks likely to be very close to the original 7 million projection, will eventually come out. But you wonder why news media that are happy to speculate about the 2016 election aren’t interested in at least putting out a heads-up about the strong possibility of a bombshell number next week.

And where I think this does matter is that it shows a persistent slant in much reporting toward emphasizing the negatives about health reform. The website woes were, and deserved to be, a big story; the quite amazing comeback somehow doesn’t fit the preferred narrative, and is being ignored — and this despite the fact that, as Gaba notes, it offers great visuals too.

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/30/the-aca-surge-blackout


26 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Krugman: The ACA Surge Blackout (Original Post) ProSense Mar 2014 OP
Same huge last minute happened with Romneycare ErikJ Mar 2014 #1
Exactly Blue_Adept Mar 2014 #3
But you guys have Soviet style breadlines now and rationing because of the socialism IronLionZion Mar 2014 #22
We have a propaganda machine that makes North Korea envious Blue_Adept Mar 2014 #23
If you take all the right wingers, and folks on our side who call Obama a POS over the ACA, Hoyt Mar 2014 #2
Krugman hit the nail on the head. Wellstone ruled Mar 2014 #4
You nailed the media focus. n/t ProSense Mar 2014 #6
Democrats need to defend the ACA and stop the stupid denial... jimlup Mar 2014 #5
CNN - I mean Ft370 non-stop malaise Mar 2014 #7
There have been sign-up events happening all week BumRushDaShow Mar 2014 #8
Photos from various events ProSense Mar 2014 #9
I Am Shocked...SHOCKED to Learn Dirty Socialist Mar 2014 #10
I remember listening to Radio Moscow as a kid on my shortwave . They only told the world what they geretogo Mar 2014 #11
Actually CBS radio news said they might get 7 million and there is a lot of action. mucifer Mar 2014 #12
Nothing GOOD that Obama has done has EVER been reported since Day One in 2009. freshwest Mar 2014 #13
And I have noticed that the MSM does not pay much attention to revised economic kelliekat44 Mar 2014 #14
the media is a force for republicans...it should be obvious by now. spanone Mar 2014 #15
Yep. The Mighty Wurlitzer. nt redqueen Mar 2014 #26
Fucking corporatemediawhores.. you'd think they were in bed with koch. Cha Mar 2014 #16
If they get close to original projections of 7 million alcibiades_mystery Mar 2014 #17
Yup. Here's ProSense Mar 2014 #18
''If Obama was as smart as I am, tra la la....'' Whisp Mar 2014 #19
The attempt to ProSense Mar 2014 #20
There was a lot of confusion and people spreading pure BS IronLionZion Mar 2014 #25
Update: ProSense Mar 2014 #21
"...a persistent slant in much reporting toward emphasizing the negatives about health reform." redqueen Mar 2014 #24
 

ErikJ

(6,335 posts)
1. Same huge last minute happened with Romneycare
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 02:52 PM
Mar 2014

so it was inevitable same would be for ACA. Human nature thing.

Blue_Adept

(6,399 posts)
3. Exactly
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 03:04 PM
Mar 2014

Wasn't it like 146 signups in the first month of that in MA or some such low number? Then as it went on and in the last month, boom, things went big. And the apocalypse hasn't hit the state since then either.

IronLionZion

(45,447 posts)
22. But you guys have Soviet style breadlines now and rationing because of the socialism
Mon Mar 31, 2014, 07:00 AM
Mar 2014

and all your doctors fled to Canada, er ... or to some red state like Texas, and your state went bankrupt and needs bailouts, and


Yes, I've heard those types of lies about Romneycare from Republicans.

Blue_Adept

(6,399 posts)
23. We have a propaganda machine that makes North Korea envious
Mon Mar 31, 2014, 07:31 AM
Mar 2014

It's how we trick everyone into thinking things are normal here.

 

Hoyt

(54,770 posts)
2. If you take all the right wingers, and folks on our side who call Obama a POS over the ACA,
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 02:59 PM
Mar 2014

the media is really reporting what the majority believe and are going to hear, no matter what is written or is the truth. I find it quite sad.

 

Wellstone ruled

(34,661 posts)
4. Krugman hit the nail on the head.
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 03:11 PM
Mar 2014

Noticed the so called Corporate News (CBS-NBC-ABC and of course the False Equivalency-F*X)ramped up their reporting of ACA horror stories,and you could tell the real from the staged,in markets that are the new swing voters. Every station here in Vegas started their news(gag me)with some negative ACA thing since Wednesday. Of course,we had the Parade of Want A BE's over at Sheldon's House,which was the second story of the day that and 27 dogs needing a home. Have yet to see or hear a single positive piece about ACA in this area. There was and is a huge signup program going on at a the Cashman Center. Nothing in the print media and a 10 second thing on the news last evening. Talk about so called Liberal Media,bullshit,wait till the Culinary Folks shut down this town in a few weeks,then things will start to pop.

This is Nevada and have yet to hear a peep from Harry Reid supporting ACA. What are you afraid of Harry,you had the majority of votes in Clark and Washoe counties.

jimlup

(7,968 posts)
5. Democrats need to defend the ACA and stop the stupid denial...
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 03:44 PM
Mar 2014

They need to stand up for what they support. We've given in America access to Health Care. This is a big deal. Democrats need to stand behind it or risk being decimated in '14. They don't have to adopt the stupid mainstream media/republican narrative here. They need to stand up and write their own narrative.

malaise

(269,022 posts)
7. CNN - I mean Ft370 non-stop
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 04:50 PM
Mar 2014

is busy breaking news about a missing aircraft.

Pluuuuuuuuuuuz - you expect them to stop to comment on Obamacare surges?
That is not the meme

BumRushDaShow

(129,053 posts)
8. There have been sign-up events happening all week
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 05:15 PM
Mar 2014

and this weekend here in Philly. There has been alot of coverage on the music stations targeting the demographics that the ACA was designed to help.

As to this -

...much reporting toward emphasizing the negatives...


Ever since the man was inaugurated, with the negative press about whether the couple million expected to turn out, would actually turn out in the bitter cold to watch that historic event, they have done nothing but "emphasizing the negatives".... about everything he has said and everything he has done... including self-same pundits and reporters continually manufacturing "negatives" whenever they could.

geretogo

(1,281 posts)
11. I remember listening to Radio Moscow as a kid on my shortwave . They only told the world what they
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 05:34 PM
Mar 2014

Last edited Sun Mar 30, 2014, 09:18 PM - Edit history (1)

wanted the world to hear . The Corporate media is the same here .
One day there will be no such thing as " democracy " and no America as we
have known it .

freshwest

(53,661 posts)
13. Nothing GOOD that Obama has done has EVER been reported since Day One in 2009.
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 08:39 PM
Mar 2014

We see the results daily, not just in November. The relentless media drive to depress the voting base of Democrats to get them to NOT VOTE and riling up the rightwingers TO VOTE is every day of the week, every week of the year and it takes its toll.

This entire country has been in permanent election mode since the Nixon era. The GOP knows this and their media issues their line of thinking in every venue daily. There is no opposing voice in conservative owned venues, no matter if they throw us a few liberal pundits in to appear fair. And they are increasing their control of media worldwide.

National elections are not all there is, as D.C. is full of people from the red and blue states that have fallen to talk radio, television and cable stations and other organs of propaganda.

They're NOT giving people the tools they need to fight the lies of the GOP and RWNJs. They daily give them more ground. Why don't we admit it on DU and elsewhere that the battle is not just after primaries are done, when the proof is right in front our faces as we report the RW lies?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/110215862

In 2010, after death threats and the Koch brothers Tea Party being full coverage all year long, look what they failed to report on:

The truth about the ACA, from 2010! What media refused to show!




President Obama Makes Surprise Call To Gail O'Brien


Uploaded on Sep 22, 2010

President Obama made a surprise call yesterday to Gail O'Brien, a woman in Keene, NH, who is benefiting from the Affordable Care Act, which was passed six months ago today. Gail was previously uninsured and diagnosed with high grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Thanks to the new law, Gail now has insurance through the new Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan that will pay for her treatments, and she is responding very well.

That was September 2010 before the midterms. Want to talk about conspiracy? What was on the air the entire year?

The Tea Party and their astroturf protests about the horrors of the ACA and Death Panels, etc. is what all the cable networks went with instead of telling the truth, giving Americans some information they could use.

The 2010 elections were a set up from the Koch brothers to lie about the ACA, fast track Keystone and keep the Bush tax cuts. That led to the Sequester and all the rest. And we are still fighting the lies about Obama and Obamacare after all of this time.



http://www.democraticunderground.com/110219820



 

kelliekat44

(7,759 posts)
14. And I have noticed that the MSM does not pay much attention to revised economic
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 08:39 PM
Mar 2014

indicators when they revised upward as has happened for the last three reporting periods. I had to hear it on the radio...economic growth revised up, consumer confidence revised up, housing starts revised up when weather factored, spending up, jobs created up and inventories down...which means good news. Of course the stock market speaks for itself. It is inverse to jobs. It seems that Obama is one man in a face off with his own nation...or rather the world.

spanone

(135,841 posts)
15. the media is a force for republicans...it should be obvious by now.
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 09:46 PM
Mar 2014


they're still talking about the disastrous website rollout....
 

alcibiades_mystery

(36,437 posts)
17. If they get close to original projections of 7 million
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 10:55 PM
Mar 2014

Then the website 'disaster' won't have actually been disastrous. That's the problem. CBO says 7 million. What if it comes in at 6.2? 6.6? 6.9? Then you have to go back and say, oh well, maybe the website glitches were normal glitches and the low enrollment in October was simply what would have happened even if the thing was smooth as silk.

No worries, I can already hear the insipid Obama haters' response: "Well then OBAMA should have lowered expectaaaaaations! If Obama was as smart as I am, tra la la." The predictable stupidity of the Obama haters is now just boring, as the ACA starts to really hit its benchmarks. they're exposed as the know-nothing shitheads they've always been.

ProSense

(116,464 posts)
18. Yup. Here's
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 11:02 PM
Mar 2014
No worries, I can already hear the insipid Obama haters' response: "Well then OBAMA should have lowered expectaaaaaations! If Obama was as smart as I am, tra la la." The predictable stupidity of the Obama haters is now just boring, as the ACA starts to really hit its benchmarks. they're exposed as the know-nothing shitheads they've always been.


...one, "cooking the books": http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024756163



 

Whisp

(24,096 posts)
19. ''If Obama was as smart as I am, tra la la....''
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 11:05 PM
Mar 2014

There are sooooo many that are smarter, eh?

It's kills me with laughter when you can imagine all the puffery and pomp when those words are chosen.

ProSense

(116,464 posts)
20. The attempt to
Sun Mar 30, 2014, 11:40 PM
Mar 2014

match wits with the President is transparent as hell. Some really ridiculous assertions are being passed off a: well he should have... or why doesn't he.

It's one thing to discuss strategy, but another thing entirely to constantly pretend he has no idea what he's doing, and your plan would work.

It's like the people who were sure he would lose the election giving him advice on how to campaign...because he's not doing it right.



IronLionZion

(45,447 posts)
25. There was a lot of confusion and people spreading pure BS
Mon Mar 31, 2014, 08:03 AM
Mar 2014

deliberately designed to stop people from signing up. The Koch brothers tried to scare and bribe young people in particular.

Plus human nature to wait until the last minute or to even not bother or be aware of the deadline or fully understand the importance of having insurance in case something serious happens.

We'll eventually get the numbers from private sites, brokers, direct from insurance companies, and who decided to march into the boss's office and finally sign up for their employer group plans if they had not bothered to before. Those totals should win us the election in November if they can be procured in time.

ProSense

(116,464 posts)
21. Update:
Mon Mar 31, 2014, 12:54 AM
Mar 2014
Update: And the 4th-ranking Republican in the Senate is already accusing the administration of cooking the books. I really think the possibility that the ACA might actually work never occurred to them.

Spot on, and it goes for a lot of the folks apparently greiving that it's working.



redqueen

(115,103 posts)
24. "...a persistent slant in much reporting toward emphasizing the negatives about health reform."
Mon Mar 31, 2014, 07:35 AM
Mar 2014

Yeah that seems pretty popular.

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