Please Mr. Postman!
In light of the recent election cycle, and the brand new phenomena of YouTube, making it possible to watch the best campaigns ads and classic politic gaffs from any race from the comfort of your own PC, I got to thinking about Neil Postman’s classic Amusing Ourselves to Death, which I just read recently.
The Corker-Ford Playboy Ad, the Macaca moment, the Allen campaign’s manhandling a blogger, even a campaign ad from an obscure 3rd party candidate for Governor in Massachusetts made a national splash, all because of their entertainment value. For those who were none too impressed with George Allen and had read the New Republic exposé on his Confederate Flag sympathies, it was almost satisfying to watch him bare his true colors. And it was curiosity that led many to the Corker ad, after many African Americans decried it as racist.
It led me down the path to exploring other classic TV commercials from the past. This site, The Living Room Candidate, has a supurb collection, streaching back to 1952, all the way to the present. Johnson’s “Daisy Girl,” Reagan’s “Bear” and Nixon’s gems are all there.
And finally, what got me thinking about all this today, was today’s Washington Post piece about how election news revolved primarily around covering ads and eschewing issues.
Amusing ourselves to death, indeed.
The Corker-Ford Playboy Ad, the Macaca moment, the Allen campaign’s manhandling a blogger, even a campaign ad from an obscure 3rd party candidate for Governor in Massachusetts made a national splash, all because of their entertainment value. For those who were none too impressed with George Allen and had read the New Republic exposé on his Confederate Flag sympathies, it was almost satisfying to watch him bare his true colors. And it was curiosity that led many to the Corker ad, after many African Americans decried it as racist.
It led me down the path to exploring other classic TV commercials from the past. This site, The Living Room Candidate, has a supurb collection, streaching back to 1952, all the way to the present. Johnson’s “Daisy Girl,” Reagan’s “Bear” and Nixon’s gems are all there.
And finally, what got me thinking about all this today, was today’s Washington Post piece about how election news revolved primarily around covering ads and eschewing issues.
"Ken Goldstein, a political scientist who directed the study, said the coverage of politics and elections increased in the past month and reached its peak in the week before the election. But Goldstein said the news stories tended to focus on the horse race aspect of politics rather than on the views and policies of the candidates."
Amusing ourselves to death, indeed.
