Clinton v Obama horse race

So let me recap this NYT article for you...

the rookie Obama advances and has a clear lead over Hillary with more money and more supporters

but Clinton takes out her anticipated secret weapon and passes Obama for a marginal lead...

election, race, spectacle... all the same... what's the difference between presidential elections, the olympics and the super-bowl... one appears in the news section, one is international and one appears in the sports section--- and one more minor detail the 1st determines the fate of the planet

I wonder why elecitions are covered in such detail... because they determin our faith as a democratic society or because people want entertainment?

Many poeple speak as passionately about the "American Idol" elections as they do about the presidential elections. I wonder if the only reason the presidential elections stay on people's minds longer is because they require a longer process and there are more juicy details to talk about.

I know I am not making an astonishing claim and this argument is as old as the elections themselves: but let me pose the following question:

Are horse-race style elections not the best answer for a democratic society?

Now dont get me wrong, I have no idea what the answer to that is. I am but a naive college student, but I do have ideas about it.

The pros and cons of a horse race election:

Cons:
the elections may already be decided before election day
the most important issues are not covered in the news media
people focus on sensationalists prospects of the media.

Pros:
People are actually interested in the election- good for democracy
the news media get money
people actually find out about the candidates stances
politicians have to worry more about the consequences of their actions because people may find out.