Over the winter of 1995-1996, a budgetary impasse between the Clinton Administration and Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich resulted in the furloughing of federal workers and a partial shutdown of the federal government. When people howled over the closing of a special Vermeer show at the National Gallery of Art, private funds were found to keep the exhibition open, though the rest of the museum remained shuttered. Media coverage of the saga did much to turn the shutdown into a public relations fiasco for the Republican Speaker.

How times change! Or don't. This coming weekend the Spring 2011 class of Glenn Fellows is likely to have an up-close-and-personal look at another government shutdown. The fellows should keep an eye on media coverage, which is likely to depend upon whether the source in question is located inside or outside the Capital Beltway.