Paladino has rocky relationship with press

For all their differences, Carl Paladino and Andrew Cuomo share something in common these days: dodging press requests, even from amNewYork, the biggest newspaper in Manhattan.

Paladino’s campaign said last month the GOP candidate would be available for an interview with amNewYork, but follow-up requests and public appearance inquiries were not answered.

amNewYork is the most-read newspaper in Manhattan with an average daily circulation of 358,000. It would have the equivalent of the ninth-largest paper in the United States if compared to paid dailies.

Paladino, 64, receives “a ton of media requests from all over the world” and is trying to accommodate as many as he can, a campaign spokeswoman said.

"We've been doing the exact opposite of the Cuomo campaign,” Robin Wolfgang said.

Similar interview requests to the Cuomo camp also were not returned.

While recent polls give Cuomo, 52, a widening edge, Paladino has charged that he’s been treated unfairly by the press. His relationship with news outlets – at least publicly – has been rocky.

Campaign manager Michael Caputo complained last week in a letter to “media colleagues” that “every day I get calls from reporters carrying water for Andrew Cuomo.”

It doesn’t serve candidates to shun press questions, Democratic strategist Dan Gerstein said.

“This should be very upsetting for voters when that happens and they won’t answer questions from the press, who are the public’s proxy,” he said. “What happens when they actually get into office?”