Gay Press Shouldn't Be Frustrated By Obama's Approach

Item: Gay Press Frustrated By Obama Approach

Thoughts:

1. Reality of politics: campaign communication planners have to budget Obama's time so as to maximize the number of eyeballs who read the words that Obama utters. Campaigns consider the gay press to be "specialty press." There are only so many hours in the day set up for specialty press interviews. There are only so many gay votes that Obama can reasonably expect to obtain on the basis of an interview with a gay newspaper in Philadelphia.

2. Obama has organized his campaign around "affinity groups," not around identity groups. He does not like to participate in identity politics, although he is forced to do so. (As Obama told the Advocate,

", I speak oftentimes to gay issues to a public general audience. When I spoke at Ebenezer Church for King Day, I talked about the need to get over the homophobia in the African-American community, when I deliver my stump speeches routinely I talk about the way that antigay sentiment is used to divide the country and distract us from issues that we need to be working on, and I include gay constituencies as people that should be treated with full honor and respect as part of the American family."

Arguably, it is more important for Obama to speak about gay issues to general audiences than it is for him to speak about gay issues before gay audiences.

Postulate: Gay newspapers should give Obama a break.