From News Anchor to Candidate: John Reid on the Decline of Fair Political Coverage
In the latest episode of Breaking Battlegrounds, longtime broadcaster and current Virginia Lieutenant Governor candidate John Reid reflects on how his decades behind the news desk compare to life on the campaign trail — and what he’s learned about the media along the way.
As host Chuck Warren wrapped up their conversation, he posed one final question: After twenty years in journalism, what has surprised you most about being the candidate instead of the reporter?
Reid’s answer pulled back the curtain on how dramatically the media landscape has changed.
“When I started in television, I was in Waco, Texas, and then I came back here to Richmond, the state capitol,” Reid recalled. “It was a very robust press corps covering campaigns and legislation. And there was a real interest in that civics aspect that you can only find in a state capitol.”
But that era, he says, feels like a distant memory. Many experienced reporters have left the profession, and the younger generation entering newsrooms often lacks the institutional knowledge necessary to cover elections and policy in depth.
“A lot of them appear to be kind of all-in advocacy journalists from the left,” Reid said. “That’s frustrating because I try to start out respecting reporters — I want to be open to the public.”
As a candidate, Reid has spent more time than most engaging with the press, but he’s found that commitment to transparency isn’t always met with fairness. Too often, major outlets skip over substantive issues in favor of partisan framing or surface-level coverage.
“They don’t want to cover significant issues, not just partisan issues, but significant issues,” Reid warned. “And we won’t survive if we don’t have a robust debate over ideas and a fair debate over ideas.”
That belief — that democracy depends on open and honest discussion — has become a defining message of Reid’s campaign. After years of watching politics from behind the camera, he now sees firsthand how the lack of balanced reporting shapes public understanding and trust.
As Virginia voters prepare to head to the polls, Reid’s reflections are a reminder of what’s at stake: not just an election, but the health of our civic conversation itself.
Transcript
Chuck Warren: John, we’ve got two minutes left here. Let me ask you, so much to talk about with you, but let me ask you this. You have been an anchor, a reporter for two decades. What has surprised you being on the campaign trail versus what you thought you knew as an anchor and as a news reporter?
John Reid: Well, when I started in television, I was in Waco, Texas, and then I came back here to Richmond, the state capitol. It was a very robust press corps covering campaigns and legislation. And there was a real interest in that civics aspect that you can only find in a state capitol. And so many people have left the profession. No offense to the new people, because I was very young when I started too.
But you have a lot of people who don’t have the institutional memory that’s probably necessary to cover these races appropriately. And a lot of them appear to be kind of all-in advocacy journalists from the left. And that’s frustrating because I do give, I mean, there’s no candidate in Virginia who’s spent more time talking to the reporters than I have. And that’s because in general, I try to start out respecting reporters and I want to be open to the public and I want to demonstrate that.
And so the fact that they don’t want to cover significant issues, not just partisan issues, but significant issues is really frustrating for me. We won’t survive if we don’t have a robust debate over ideas and a fair debate over ideas. One thing about me is I want to be fair with everybody. And I hope I’ve lived my life that way and I’ve demonstrated it in this campaign, I hope.
Chuck Warren: John Reid, thank you for joining us folks. You can learn more about John Reid at johnreidforvirginia.com. You can also follow him on X John. Go out there, have a great week, and we wish you the best of luck.
John Reid: Thank you, I really appreciate the time to talk to you.
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