The Bush Administration's handling of the press is the most inept in recent memory. Because they have avoided press conferences and have treated the media as a hostile camp altogether, they have missed any chance to convey or market any message by transitional means of stadard network coverage or major newsprint. What they have relied on: the conservative outlets, talk radio, punditry, and weeklies, has proved to be an unreliable medium as well. If the president is off message, these are not necessarily the most open minded sources for a debate of national interest with full disclosure of facts. The administration's failure to engage the media has so hamstrung their agenda that there is no reliable vehicle to transmit their message.
They have screwed themselves. I am no Bush supporter. But, I do believe this inability has become bad for the country.