Letters to the Editor: 9.14

Libertarian Party deserves mention in Allen article
I am writing in response to Kristi Allen’s September 12 commentary article, “Media needs to do a better job at covering third party candidates”. I completely agree with Allen’s sentiments that the dissatisfaction levels with the current status quo in US politics indicate a pressing need for the mainstream media to acknowledge the importance of third parties. It is true that the media cannot merely ignore this popular undercurrent in an attempt to stifle it. In fact, social media has already proven to be an able force, largely taking the mainstream media’s place on third party coverage.

However, given the well-thought out nature of the piece, I was surprised that any mention of Gary Johnson and the Libertarian Party was absent from the article. I realize that this article is not a platform for advocating for any particular third party, but I believe that not mentioning the fact that Gary Johnson is on the presidential ballot in 47 states is a serious omission. While Allen details the resistance to the current system, and the challenges ahead for third party voters via the mainstream media roadblocks, the article misses out on an opportunity to motivate potentially on-the-fence third party voters.

By not giving a concrete example of third party success on the road to the 2012 election and showing that changes are already occurring despite mainstream media stonewalling, Allen misses a chance to do exactly what she says the mainstream media has not done, to show that peoples’ complaints have been heard by third parties, and to show that at least one of those parties is finally in strong enough position to potentially, as the common lament goes, “do something about it”.

Briefly mentioning Johnson’s success would have shown even more strongly that Allen’s pro-voter choice sentiments are not merely idealistic college newspaper musings, but are thoughts that truly are in the forefront of many Americans’ minds this election year. Mentioning Johnson and the Libertarians’ success would have served as an salient example proving that at least one third party is finally in a position to cash in on their appeal to Americans as a whole, despite the mainstream media blackout.

Finally, there is the inspirational point that, if it can work for one third party, with enough voter activism it can surely work for others. As this new realization spreads and leads to action on the part of the electorate, we could truly bring change to this country, unlike what we were promised 4 years ago.

– John Tyczkowski