Symposium: Strategic Communication Problems in Presidential Campaigns

In: Political communication, Band 11, Heft 2, S. 107-164

Abstract

In Editor's Foreword, Kathleen E. Kendall (State U of New York, Albany) provides an overview to this symposium addressing communication problems of presidential candidates, their handling, & theoretical explanations of these situations. In Presidential Concession Speeches: The Rhetoric of Defeat, Paul E. Corcoran (U of Adelaide, South Australia 5001) analyzes the elaborate rituals of defeated presidential candidates, 1952-1992. Consistent patterns of style, strategy, & content are found that utilize metaphors of game, sport, chivalry, & epic quest. Seen as a narrative of democratic action, it is symbolic of the public moral drama & thus involves complex spiritual concerns. In Managing Perceptions of Public Opinion: Candidates' and Journalists' Reactions to the 1992 Polls, Sandra Bauman (Northwestern U, Evanston, IL) & Susan Herbst report on an exploratory study of the discourse surrounding opinion polls. Based on an analysis of how presidential preference polls were reported in 5 major daily newspapers in the last 2 months of the 1992 campaign, it is argued that public actors including candidates & campaign professionals reify public opinion by using a variety of rhetorical techniques to shape the statistical discourse of the campaign. In Visible and Invisible Candidates: A Case Study in "Competing Logics" of Campaign Coverage, Joshua Meyrowitz (U of New Hampshire, Durham) presents an analysis of the patterns of coverage & noncoverage of Democratic candidate Larry Agran's 1992 presidential campaign. Three logics concerning how campaigns should be covered are identified. It is suggested that the largest gap between national journalistic logic & both local journalistic & public logics exists in the reporting of minor candidates at major events. It is concluded that Agran's exclusion from national press coverage was overdetermined, & that the gap between the logics needs to be addressed. Suggestions for additional research are provided. 116 References. D. Schwartz