The ideal of a neutral, objective press has proven in the late-20th century to be just an ideal. In this study, the author goes far beyond the single claim that the press is not impartial, to argue that the news media are in fact a political institution integral to the day-to-day operations of the three branches of US government. The formation of the press as a political institution began in the early days of the republic when newspapers were sponsored by political parties; the relationship is now so central that press offices are found in every organization. The author demonstrates not only how the media are structured as an institution which exercises collective power, but also how the role of the media has become institutionalized within the political process, affecting policy and instigating, rather than merely reflecting, political actions.