shallowness of political discourse, the undue attention to image over substance, and the impoverishment of our national politics generally. Like the asteroid in Deep Impact or the aliens in Independence Day, the media are looming "out there, "threatening the destruction of civilization as we know it, and their window of opportunity opens with regularity, every four years. Every four years, too, scholars and pundits appear -- usually on national media -- warning us that the polity can not long sustain the anticipated damage. Miraculously, we survive another election cycle and struggle on. This is, of course, hyperbole. But public discourse about the media tends toward the apocalyptic, and the media are convenient scapegoats for our myriad ills. Academic discourse is little better, often bringing judgment as well as analysis to the task. There are three main areas of academic research on media influence in presidential campaigns: the structural aspects of campaigns and the media's influence