An early observer of TV's growing involvement in political affairs was author Joe McGinness. With its visual dimension, television magnifies the connection radio created. The nation listened, and FDR gave voice, authoritatively and compassionately, to problems Americans faced in their lives and homes. If a candidate seems to a viewer to be in command and wears well, an emotional connection develops, and that bond can prove significant in the voting booth.īefore television, Franklin Roosevelt's mastery of radio in his "fireside chats" staked out the living room as a place politicians could go to establish a direct rapport with the citizenry. The trick in cultivating a successfully telegenic "image" involves marrying personal traits - the authentic self - with qualities that make one engaging or appealing. Television creates a sense of intimacy between candidate and voter, and the political figure hopes to become a regular guest in the collective American household for the campaign season - and the next four years. Portraying oneself as a comfortably likable person is essential. The "living-room factor" means someone campaigning for president needs to conform to the medium's theatrical values. But those messages, by and large, come to us via our TV sets from candidates as concerned with how they dramatize themselves and their cause as with any wonkish prospectus or 12-point plan. Textbooks might describe national campaigns as contests of ideas, competing policies, and proposals charting the country's future. To a certain degree, the road to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue goes through your residence. Arlen called Vietnam the "living-room war." Today, because of television, the "living-room factor" plays an increasingly significant role in presidential politics. Between news reports, interview programs, talk shows, chats with late-night comics, and commercials, candidates are now unavoidable as they occupy our screens and seek our support.īack in 1969, writer Michael J. Television made White House aspirants guests - invited or not - in our households, and they began dropping by at all hours. When television became the principal tool for political communication, seekers of the presidency confronted a new challenge: They had to present themselves not only as plausible leaders of a world superpower, but also as visitors Americans would welcome in their homes.
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