You must have been on vacation...he was striving to get the Dem nomination for president. National news.
As well as local to your area/state.
excerpt from Time http://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1721111_1721210_1721112,00.htmll
... It was in April of 1987 that former Senator Gary Hart announced the beginning of his second presidential campaign. Less than a month later, the Miami Herald published a photo of a young woman leaving Hart’s residence.
The candidate expressed outrage at the paper, but within a week the Herald received tips that Hart had visited Bimini with a woman who was not his wife, then published photos showing a 29-year-old model, Donna Rice, sitting on Hart’s lap.
Less than a week later, Hart announced he was dropping out of the race (he would later re-enter, unsuccessfully).
I started law school in 1987, one of the third year students had just returned from a recruiting trip to a Denver law firm. Some of the firm members took him to lunch, and they each talked a little about their particular area of practice. He asked one of the partners who had not said much what he did - to which he replied he had been running for President earlier that year. Not sure who was more embarrassed, the student for not recognizing Senator Hart or Senator Hart for not being recognized.