Problem Is Public’S Apathy Sound-Bitten Disinterested People Rely On Paid-For Blather.

If politics worked like a self-cleaning oven, it would be called campaign finance reform.

Democracy is not maintenance-free, however. Gadgets can’t protect disinterested citizens from the grimy consequences of their own neglect.

Money corrupts political campaigns for a simple reason. It allows candidates to buy air time and newspaper space, and to hire publicity wizards to generate artful but empty blather on which too many voters rely.

Campaign finance reform won’t keep political pros from finding a way around it.

And it certainly will not inspire voters to explore the rich sources of helpful information they now shun in favor of vacuous gab that passes for political discourse.

Broadcast and print media regularly cover political news and public issues. Candidates appear at lightly attended forums and elected officials perform in a public arena year round. Friends, neighbors and co-workers have endless opportunities to engage in discussion of pertinent issues.

These avenues are more demanding than watching 30-second TV spots for a week or two but if Americans used them, it would seriously dilute the impact of big bucks.

Campaign finance reform is a quantitative answer to a qualitative question. To improve campaigns, we should be expanding - and elevating - the conversation, not narrowing it.