Jack Risko of Dinocrat.com has identified an unspoken reason why the media like John McCain: he allows them to feel good about themselves.

McCain is the media's perennial second choice. He affirms to the MSM that they are truly objective, neither Democrat nor Republican, though that is clearly not true. McCain flatters the media by allowing them to pretend they are objective by being a "close second" to the person they will actually vote for. Whether the candidate or the media understand this relationship is unknown at this time. 

There is much more to read at this interesting post.