In “The Anti-Mainstream Media Election” (Ideas, Sept. 15), Jack Shafer appears to praise Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump for chats with billionaires, visits to the darkest corners of the podcast universe and repeated forays into Fox News (the Republican). version of Pravda), so-called “press conferences” at Mar-a-Lago and various appearances on local television news.

Conversely, Shafer lambasts Democratic candidate Kamala Harris for what he calls “something like tactical silence” in minimal interviews on CNN and other smaller networks, with the exception of her rallies. He says that’s because “she knows she’s not good on her feet.” It was pretty clear to anyone who watched the Sept. 10 presidential debate which candidate was strong, and it wasn’t who went into a tirade about people eating dogs and cats.

Shafer rightly notes that those who complain loudest about candidates not doing interviews with the mainstream media are the mainstream media itself. Maybe that’s because they insist on portraying this election as a horse race between two equally qualified politicians. This type of reporting does not explain how the candidates’ different approaches would impact the country. Instead, the focus seems to be on the latest problem.