Astorino's learning to massage his message
When Rob Astorino was a Westchester County legislator 10 years ago, it was easy to get him on the phone: Just call his cell or try the radio station where he worked.
But as he has worked his way up the ranks to county executive and now Republican gubernatorial candidate, he's adopted more of the trappings of office, from security to aides accompanying him on appearances. And, not least, a communications apparatus has grown up around him, in both his county office and campaign, that orchestrates the message going out to the public and press and manages access to the candidate.
Astorino also has taken advantage of technologies that let him talk directly to voters. In announcing his campaign for governor, he released a produced video instead of holding the more traditional news conference. And he has continued making major announcements and releasing statements by video, with an invitation for the TV news to pick them up.
On Monday he launched a harsh attack on the Common Core education curriculum and declared that his children will opt out of the tests this week — all on Astorino.tv. Less than a month into his campaign, the online gallery includes 12 videos, some in Spanish.
Much of his approach is just common sense. As he noted in a telephone interview — arranged through a campaign spokesman in a series of emails laying out the topic of the interview — he can't spend 10 hours on the phone every day with the press. And the videos let him be everywhere at once and get out his message in a way that's fast and inexpensive and get back to work.
"It's direct to the people, so it's unfiltered," he said. "The media has it. Anyone can view it and watch it and hear directly from me."
But it also shelters him from questions and kills the chance for spontaneous opinions.
In some less obvious ways, Astorino's administration also has kept control of information, particularly in limiting direct access to county department heads and other staff and refusing to release documents that public information experts say should be available. Nearly all requests for comment get an answer from the PR staff.
A campaign is about messaging, said E. O'Brien Murray, a Republican strategist, and the press can knock you off the points you're trying to get across.
"If you look historically, at any time it doesn't get scripted and well organized and well advanced, it's an opportunity for a problem," Murray said, citing criticism of New York City mayoral candidate Joe Lhota after female aides and reporters were kicked out of an unscheduled stop an an Orthodox synagogue in Brooklyn.
At the county executive's office on the ninth floor of the county office building in White Plains, Astorino has a staff of communications assistants who are the first and often the last point of contact. His campaign team has a pair of political strategists and communications consultants.
In keeping the press at arm's length and carefully crafting a message, Astorino is no different from many public figures from school district superintendents to his opponent in the governor's office, Andrew Cuomo. And he's still available for one-on-one conversations, just maybe not on a reporter's schedule; he sits down with television interviewers as he travels the state introducing himself and usually will talk to reporters after speeches, events and press conferences.
Astorino said he's never been shy about answering questions. He did a radio show Wednesday, and did more than 20 town hall meetings in his first term as county executive, he said.
Jeanne Zaino, a political science professor at Iona College in New Rochelle who is on leave teaching campaign management classes at New York University, said the increasing information control reflects the professionalization in the field of campaign management, which has seeped over into government. A growing cadre of communications strategists are entrusted to protect candidates and get their message out the way they want it.
"One kind of tired moment when you say something you shouldn't say can really create enormous trouble," she said.
Murray praised Astorino's use of video as an effective means to reach the entire state, an upgrade from the old method of trying to hit each major media market in a day of traveling or issuing a press release with a photo. And the videos can easily reach a wider audience through social media.
"If he did it in Buffalo, only Buffalo would cover it," he said.
Cuomo also has been criticized for his record on open government, both for slow response to Freedom of Information requests and that major decisions are made behind closed doors. And the Albany media have complained they have little access to him or opportunity to ask tough questions, Zaino said.
Zaino said it's troubling from a government perspective.
"It's the public that suffers," she said.
Twitter: @eganga