As uncertain as the Republican race remains heading into Super Tuesday, one thing is for sure: Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum are attracting the most media attention.
LexisNexis Legal and Professional, a computer-assisted research company that tracks media coverage, released data Friday that showed Romney has had the most overall exposure among all of the GOP contenders in the final days of February with 33 percent of the coverage, while Santorum is close behind, earning 32 percent of the attention. [See pictures of Mitt Romney]
If history is any indicator, the slim margin in the number of media mentions between the candidates will likely unfold into a showdown Tuesday between Romney and Santorum.
There is one thing in common between all of the candidates that have won a primary or caucus this year: In the week leading up to their victories, the number of the times the candidate was mentioned in the media ballooned. [GOP Candidates Could All Add to Federal Debt.]
Before Iowa, Rick Santorum's percentage rose to 14 percent from 7 percent. Newt Gingrich experienced a 4 percentage point increase before he won South Carolina.
"During this intriguing Republican presidential nomination race, media coverage patterns for primary winners lend potential clues to the eventual nominee," said Tom Ogburn, vice president and managing director of Business Insight Solutions at LexisNexis Legal and Professional.
The bad news comes for Gingrich, who saw a steep decline in earned media in the past four weeks leading up to Super Tuesday. Gingrich has had only 23 percent of the media mentions, with Texas Rep. Ron Paul holding 15 percent of the coverage.
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jataensuent of SC 6:08PM August 28, 2012
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