President Obama's Media Coverage by the Numbers

Now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine:

Media Darling

President Obama is getting more coverage, and more positive coverage, from the media than his two predecessors.

A new study of his first 50 days in office reveals the network evening newscasts devoted 27 hours, 44 minutes of coverage to his presidency. George W. Bush received just under eight hours in his first 50 days. Bill Clinton: 15 hours.

CBS had almost 11 hours. NBC was next with nine and a half. ABC had seven and a third. The study looked at the first half-hour of "Special Report" on FOX and we had 10 hours, 24 minutes.

The coverage on the broadcast nets was judged 58 percent positive for President Obama. That compares to 33 percent for Mr. Bush and 44 percent for Mr. Clinton.

NBC was most positive at 61 percent. CBS was 58 percent, ABC 57 percent, and Special Report was 13 percent.

The study authors described this show — as "FOX News Special Report" — which most closely resembles the broadcast network newscasts."

The study did not look at CNN or MSNBC.

Fit to Print

Speaking of positive coverage, Sam Fullwood III writes in a Los Angeles Times piece titled, "For Obama, Hipness Is What It Is," that, "Barack Hussein Obama is the nation's first hip president… Watch him walk. Listen to him talk. See the body language, the expressions, the clothes. He's got attitude, rhythm, a sense of humor, contemporary tastes.... his style is rooted in something elusive and hard to define. Pure and simple, it's hip."

And from the French Press Agency, the story is titled "Obama's Rock and Rule." "The Obamas are the planet's hottest rock stars busy revamping the image of the U.S. presidency." It quotes a college professor as saying: "This is Camelot the Sequel." And a journalist says: "Washington is in a real golden age."

Labor of Love

Some reporters are questioning the White House commitment to transparency. The Washington Times reports the administration is giving up on transparency by the labor unions. The labor Department is allowing union officials to skirt conflict of interest reporting rules. It said bringing enforcement actions against union leaders who violate the law, "would not be a good use of resources."

Got Her Irish Up

The former U.S. ambassador to the Vatican is the latest to criticize the University of Notre Dame over its invitation to President Obama to speak at next month's commencement.

Mary Ann Glendon will not accept the school's Laetare Medal at the event, saying giving the president an honorary degree is wrong because his moral principles conflict with the church. A spokesman says the school is disappointed and will award the medal to someone else.

Going in Style

And Prince Charles is embarking on a tour of Europe to promote environmental issues. The Daily Mail reports instead of flying commercial the prince is chartering a luxury private jet. His 2,200 mile trip will leave a carbon footprint of nearly 53 tons, about five times the average person's footprint for an entire year.

— FOX News Channel's Lanna Britt contributed to this report.