We weren’t surprised that Niki Tsongas won in the Fifth Congressional District election this week. She spoke with passion about issues that are important to most people today—bringing about change in Washington, bringing the troops home from Iraq, health care, and protecting the environment. She had name recognition and solid financial backing. Jim Ogonowski was close on her heels, winning 45 percent of the vote, and had the support of powerful Republicans. We heard a lot about both of them during the campaign.

But there were three other candidates in the race, none of whom appeared to have been taken seriously by the media. One candidate, Independent Kurt Hayes, felt compelled to ask the Federal Communications Commission to investigate violations of the “equal time” requirement by several Boston area radio and TV stations, charging that neither he, nor Patrick Murphy nor Kevin Thompson were given equal opportunities to air their views.

We are troubled by the trend in recent years where the media has come to have such a high degree of influence over elections. Media analysts decide early on which candidates have the best chance of “making it,” and thereafter those are the ones to whom attention is given in interviews, editorials, debates, and forums. Those are the ones whose views we hear.

We agree with all the Fifth Congressional District candidates who called for change. But we think the changes need to go far beyond Washington.