First Take: Manipulating the media. Meg Whitman’s homework. Budget battle goes Hollywood

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With cutbacks in the press corps and an explosion of blogs, it’s easier than ever for political campaigns to manipulate the media.

George Skelton says Meg Whitman may not have any political experience but she’s proving to be a quick study.

Whitman reached out to the grass roots -- or maybe that was ivy instead of grass -- as she held a Los Angeles fundraiser for fellow Harvard alumni.

In Sacramento, the budget battle has gone Hollywood.

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-- Anthony York