In case nobody has noticed, there are four, not three, candidates campaigning to be Maine’s next governor. We all know the first three: Cutler, LePage and Michaud, but the fourth candidate – the stealth liberal press – is not on the ballot. The print press, a component of the larger media, is sometimes referred to as The Fourth Estate, because it plays an immense role, comparable to that of the three constitutional branches of government, in shaping our laws, our culture, our opinions and who will govern us.

How much of an impact will the press have in determining who will be our next governor?

According to the authors of “Collusion,” an in-depth analysis of the 2012 presidential election: “… it is fanciful, even preposterous, to suggest that the media had no impact on it. It is far more reasonable to conclude that they provided four points for Obama – his margin of victory.” (Collusion involves a tacit agreement in which both sides of a scheme stand to gain something.)

In our time, politicians are elected on the basis of a “story” concocted by the media.

Whether or not the story corresponds with the facts is irrelevant. Repeat it often enough and it becomes “the truth.” The storyline which the press has been circulating for months goes something like this: Cutler – rich, well-meaning but untested and therefore risky, so treat him with benign neglect; LePage – a crude upstart who throws widows and orphans out in the snow, so cover him with dirt but don’t be too obvious, downplay his accomplishments; and Michaud – our knight in shining armor who will lead us to the land of milk and money, so treat him with kid gloves because he’s still trying to find himself. Never mention his record or qualifications.

Columnists Brent Bozell and Tim Graham ask: “Can free elections – democracy itself – survive a leftist political onslaught dishonestly packaged as objective news reporting?”

Don’t let the stealth candidate steal another election.

Walter J. Eno

Scarborough