Ever since television came about in the late 1940s, the way people view the world has changed (“Has Television Reshaped Politics?”). As Frank Stanton, the president of the Columbia Broadcasting System, said: “Not even the sky is the limit.” (“Has Television Reshaped Politics?”). Television has changed politics a great deal. The way the people get to know the candidates and their policies have totally changed. The real question is has it changed for better or worse? Television has taken some of the logic out of how we choose the president. With television people can judge less on what a candidate is saying and more on appearances. A huge example of this is the debate between Kennedy and Nixon. This debate influenced the people's views immensely.
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People who are on tv seem to have an influence over the general population. When president Johnson was re-running for president he commented that the war in Vietnam could still be won (Austin Ranney). However, Johnson’s favorite newsman Walter Cronkite, was very skeptical of this notion. Because of this, Crokite decided to go to Vietnam and have a look for himself (Austin Ranney). Upon returning he stated that there was little to no way to win the war and that the U.S. should get out of the war (Austin Ranney). After saying this, the people decided that Johnson might not be the correct choice for president again. Knowing the American people trusted Cronkite, Johnson dropped out of the race knowing he could no longer win and also ended the bombardment on Vietnam (Austin Ranney). The one newsman had an influence on not only the general public, but the president himself. Before television this could have never …show more content…
While TV has given us a way to better see policies of a candidate, it has also given us a bunch of useless information as well. Due to the vast knowledge we now have on presidents, we feel we know them on a personal level (Hart, Roderick and Triece, Mary). This closeness makes everyone feel that they no longer need party guidance (Hart, Roderick and Triece, Mary). It is also making politics less about policies and more about image. The candidate will focus more on how their family looks and behaves in the public eye. They also will focus more on what bad things they did once that cannot get leaked. This change of focus can make a person who is not qualified win just because they appear to look good on
People who are on tv seem to have an influence over the general population. When president Johnson was re-running for president he commented that the war in Vietnam could still be won (Austin Ranney). However, Johnson’s favorite newsman Walter Cronkite, was very skeptical of this notion. Because of this, Crokite decided to go to Vietnam and have a look for himself (Austin Ranney). Upon returning he stated that there was little to no way to win the war and that the U.S. should get out of the war (Austin Ranney). After saying this, the people decided that Johnson might not be the correct choice for president again. Knowing the American people trusted Cronkite, Johnson dropped out of the race knowing he could no longer win and also ended the bombardment on Vietnam (Austin Ranney). The one newsman had an influence on not only the general public, but the president himself. Before television this could have never …show more content…
While TV has given us a way to better see policies of a candidate, it has also given us a bunch of useless information as well. Due to the vast knowledge we now have on presidents, we feel we know them on a personal level (Hart, Roderick and Triece, Mary). This closeness makes everyone feel that they no longer need party guidance (Hart, Roderick and Triece, Mary). It is also making politics less about policies and more about image. The candidate will focus more on how their family looks and behaves in the public eye. They also will focus more on what bad things they did once that cannot get leaked. This change of focus can make a person who is not qualified win just because they appear to look good on