Annabel Crabb on the life of a journo on the election ride, and how the impact of always-on coverage might have dumbed and dulled down the campaign:

Now, thanks to the advent of wireless, BlackBerrys, iPhones and iPads, most journos have absorbed the major newspapers and websites before they show up to the press conference. If Kevin Rudd has said something in Brisbane, or Candidate X has made some Holocaust reference, the journos will know all about it. And the questions reflect that, I think. Whereupon in former campaigns, the questions might have centred more around the policy being offered, these days they are more likely to canvass the campaign issue of the day. This liberalisation of communication has been answered by the campaign teams with even tighter management.