Goodman on Bush the Showman
Howard Goodman, a columnist based in Palm Beach, FL, comments on how the Bush image-crafting team goes showman-extraordinaire Ronald Reagan one better: For Bush, as with the Gipper, it’s on with the show. It’s mostly a recapitulation of that New York Times article from the other day, but I liked the Reagan story in the lead enough to post it.
May 27th, 2003 at 6:56 am
I’m not sure how you can list Reagan and Bush as media manipulators and showmen without including Slick Willy! Besides, you’re only fooling yourself if you think a President or a candidate can get by in today’s image-based media age without the requisite media handlers and consultants to craft the preceptions that are desired by that politican’s inner circle.
May 27th, 2003 at 7:28 am
Well, the story was specifically focused on the way in which the Reagan administration, and then the current Bush administration, have significantly ratcheted up the attention paid to production values in presidential appearances. Neither Bush the First nor Clinton made dramatic advances in those areas.
Yeah, they both paid attention to maintaining their image. And there was certainly a shameless, always-on, carnival-barker-esque hucksterism to the way Clinton sold himself.
I realize that all politicians are media manipulators, and that the packaging is often more important than the product in terms of selling them to voters. The current Bush just emphasizes that more than other recent presidents, is all.