Have we learned nothing in fifty years? By we I mean here media professionals who advise, spin and manipulate the images of our esteemed leaders. Let me offer two simple images ok?
These are from the same night. I was under the impression that media professionals were supposed to make the candidate look good, like the way Obama looked.
And now a third image…
For those of you for whom history is nothing more than a TV channel you don’t watch let me explain this piece of Americana. This is an image from the 1960 presidential debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon. This was a big deal at the time because people’s perception of who won depended less on political affiliation and more on whether they heard the debate on the radio or saw it on television.
Radio = Nixon wins. TV = Kennedy wins.
I’m not saying this triumph of image over content is something we should all celebrate, I just thought it was something that we are all aware of.
Remember kids… the medium is the message.