Well said Mrs. Edwards.

Even though it wasn't a sermon, I'm sure Elizabeth Edwards' OpEd in Sunday's New York Times elicited its share of hearty "amens."

While many aspects of the 2008 presidential race have been historic and inspiring, the media fixation on the superficial has not.

Edwards critiqued the "strobe light journalism, in which outlines are accurate enough but we cannot really see the whole picture," which has come to dominate much of the 2008 coverage, particularly in recent weeks. She (and, I suspect, most Americans) would like to learn a bit more about candidates' health care proposals and less about their bowling scores.

As Rev. Jeremiah Wright once again returns to the national scene, we're treated to yet another reminder of the murkiness surrounding the values debate in America. As with healthcare, substantive discussion of religion and religious values often falls by the wayside in the current gaffe-centric environment.

Dwelling on controversy and strategy brings us no closer to understanding how a candidate's values might affect his or her policies, nor does it give the American people a better insight into their character.

It does, however, seem to keep pundits employed and drive up view counts on YouTube.

Which brings us to Edwards' last point. If we want a "vibrant, vigorous press...we'll have to demand it."