The Media plays a huge role in the debate over the National Debt and the Financial Services Sector. The same topics are covered very differently by the different media organizations. Prior to the Financial Crisis there was limited discussion of increased financial regulation. However, after the Crisis prominent companies such as MSNBC, CNN, and the New York Times all came out in favor of increased regulation, while the New York Post, Wall Street Journal, and Fox News did not support additional regulations. While the New York Times would often put stories about the Dodd-Frank Bill on the front page, the Wall Street Journal would place it on page 8 of the Money&Investing section. MSNBC hosts such as Rachel Maddow said increased regulation would help prevent future busts. While Fox New's anchors like Sean Hannity said it would limited the profitability of financial services firms and slow economic growth. When covering the national debt the differences between the major media organizations is more nuanced. All of the major news outlets agree that something must be done. The difference is the New York Times, MSNBC, and CNN support higher taxes along with spending cuts, while Fox News/WSJ often support only spending cuts. In addition although more left leaning news sources like MSNBC say the national debt is an issue, they argue that it is not an urgent one. While Fox often states the debt must be cut to avoid a severe economic crisis. 
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I learned several disturbing facts from the NPR program "Take the Money and Run for Office." I had no idea that many congressmen need to raise 10,000 to 15,000 dollars a day for their campaigns. One congressmen said that he spent around three hours a day fundraising. In addition, I had no idea it was illegal for congressmen to fundraise from their offices and that many leased space across the street. These call centers often have terrible working conditions and exist solely for the purpose of cold calling wealthy donors. The most troubling thing I learned is that Senator Feingold and others believe that the Citizens United decisions was among the worst Supreme Court rulings of all time. This story reminded me off the Gilded Age. A time when money had an inordinate amount of power in politics and the average American suffered as a result. During the summer of 2012 I volunteered with a fundraising company that handled fundraising for the RNC and I saw firsthand the amount of time that goes into fundraising. However, I had no idea the congressmen and candidates spent so much of their own time doing it. Why did the Supreme Court rule the way it did on Citizens United? The Supreme Court ruled that the 1st Amendment protected the right of unlimited donations by corporations.