do newspaper endorsements have any effect on a presidential race? is there any data correlating a bump in the polls with a newspaper endorsement?
people always act like it's a big deal, they're "highly sought" and all. i can imagine why endorsements might make a difference in the campaigns for low-level offices, races that get so little attention it's hard to figure out who is running. in those kind of races, sometimes the endorsement is the only real press it ever gets.
but none of that applies in a presidential race, especially this one. it's been getting plenty of coverage for the past year. do endorsements help in a race like this? has anyone out there ever felt influenced in a high profile race by a newspaper endorsement?
(i've probably asked this question before, somewhere deep in my archives or comments. i think about it every election cycle when endorsement season rolls around.)
