This paper examines the role of the media in modern elections. In particular, the media industry is included in a traditional spatial voting framework. Consumers are modeled as random utility maximizers, and predictions are obtained, including an incumbency/celebrity advantage, emphasis of news concerning front-runners and unknown candidates, higher levels of coverage of volatile issues, higher levels of horse-race coverage in heterogeneous electorates, and lower levels of issue coverage in competitive news markets. The paper also includes a brief, cursory look at media coverage of Perot's candidacies in 1992 and 1996, illustrating how the model can be used "out of the box.
