The Influence of Television in Politics
The Influence of Television in Politics
Kendra Harris
Brigham Young University- Idaho
Author Note
This paper was prepared for Professor Kiersten Lee’s FDENG 201 class.
The Influence of Television in Politics “Americans are the best entertained and quite likely the least-informed people in the Western world.” (Postman, 1984, p. 2) While this statement is painfully ominous, its message is one that has been debated tirelessly since the dawn of technology. The influence of television in politics is one with strong advocates and opponents. There have been many studies and investigations into the effects of technology on the political world, and yet no conclusive evidence has come forth. (Rannay, 1985, p. 3) Despite this, it is no mystery that television has irrevocably changed politics in the past and now. The responsibility for this change does not lie solely with television or with the audience. What remains to be seen is whether this effect has been detrimental or beneficial to the political process. “Between 1947 and 1955, the percentage of American homes owning television sets rose from less than 1 to 65 percent; today, almost everybody has a TV set.” (Rannay, 1985, p. 6) The television set became commercially available in the 1920s, but did not begin to have a political effect until the 1952 presidential campaign between Dwight D. Eisenhower and Adlai Stevenson. While Stevenson did not approve of electronic campaigning, Eisenhower to took the screens, creating “short spot commercials to enhance his television image.” (Kaid, 1981, p. 47) These commercials helped Eisenhower to create an image that was friendly and charming, which eventually led to him winning the campaign. Since this pioneering campaign, “Every presidential campaign […] has relied heavily on political television spots.” Television campaigning dominates the political world, and 50-75% of all campaign budgets in the 1992 presidential campaign were devoted to TV spots, commercials,
Kendra Harris
Brigham Young University- Idaho
Author Note
This paper was prepared for Professor Kiersten Lee’s FDENG 201 class.
The Influence of Television in Politics “Americans are the best entertained and quite likely the least-informed people in the Western world.” (Postman, 1984, p. 2) While this statement is painfully ominous, its message is one that has been debated tirelessly since the dawn of technology. The influence of television in politics is one with strong advocates and opponents. There have been many studies and investigations into the effects of technology on the political world, and yet no conclusive evidence has come forth. (Rannay, 1985, p. 3) Despite this, it is no mystery that television has irrevocably changed politics in the past and now. The responsibility for this change does not lie solely with television or with the audience. What remains to be seen is whether this effect has been detrimental or beneficial to the political process. “Between 1947 and 1955, the percentage of American homes owning television sets rose from less than 1 to 65 percent; today, almost everybody has a TV set.” (Rannay, 1985, p. 6) The television set became commercially available in the 1920s, but did not begin to have a political effect until the 1952 presidential campaign between Dwight D. Eisenhower and Adlai Stevenson. While Stevenson did not approve of electronic campaigning, Eisenhower to took the screens, creating “short spot commercials to enhance his television image.” (Kaid, 1981, p. 47) These commercials helped Eisenhower to create an image that was friendly and charming, which eventually led to him winning the campaign. Since this pioneering campaign, “Every presidential campaign […] has relied heavily on political television spots.” Television campaigning dominates the political world, and 50-75% of all campaign budgets in the 1992 presidential campaign were devoted to TV spots, commercials,
References: Carr, N. (2008) Is google making us stupid? In W. Brugger, D. Hammond, M.K. Hartvigsen, A. Papworth & R. Seamons (Eds.), The way of wisdom (p. 1-8). Rexburg, ID, BYU-Idaho. Retrieved January 16, 2012, from http://ilearn.byui.edu Huxley, A. (1958) Propaganda under a dictatorship. In W. Brugger, D. Hammond, M.K. Hartvigsen, A. Papworth & R. Seamons (Eds.), The way of wisdom (p. 1-5). Rexburg, ID, BYU-Idaho. Retrieved January 16, 2012, from http://ilearn.byui.edu Kaid, L. (1981) Political advertising. In D. Nimmo and K.R. Sanders (Eds.), Handbook of political communication. Beverly Hills: Sage. Nagourney, A. (2006) Politics faces sweeping change via the web. New York Times. Retrieved January 23, 2012 from http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/02/washington/ 02campaign.html?pagewanted=all Pinker, S. (2010) Mind over mass media. In W. Brugger, D. Hammond, M.K. Hartvigsen, A. Papworth & R. Seamons (Eds.), The way of wisdom (p. 1-4). Rexburg, ID, BYU-Idaho. Retrieved January 16, 2012, from http://ilearn.byui.edu Postman, N. (1984) Amusing ourselves to death. In W. Brugger, D. Hammond, M.K. Hartvigsen, A. Papworth & R. Seamons (Eds.), The way of wisdom (p. 1-4). Rexburg, ID, BYU-Idaho. Retrieved January 16, 2012, from http://ilearn.byui.edu Ranney, A. (1985) Channels of power: the impact of television on American politics. (pp. 1-7). New York: Basic Books. Stephen, M. (n.d.) History of television. New York University. Retrieved January 23, 2012 from http://www.nyu.edu/classes/stephens/History%20of%20Television%20page.htm