MUSEUM OF TELEVISION & RADIO SEMINAR SERIES, THE: TELEVISION AND THE PRESIDENCY, SEMINAR NO. 9: THE 1992 ELECTION: WAS IT DIFFERENT? {LONG VERSION}
Summary
One in this series of seminars conducted by The Museum of Television & Radio. This seminar, the ninth of ten seminars about television and the U.S. presidency, looks at the use of the "new media" -- including Larry King, Phil Donahue, and MTV -- during the 1992 presidential campaign; how this changed the traditional relationship between the candidate and the voter; and how it influenced voter turnout. The program is moderated by Museum president Robert M. Batscha and Stephen Weiswasser of Multimedia Group, Capital Cities/ABC, Inc. The following panelists participate: John Chancellor, formerly of NBC News; talk show host Phil Donahue; Henry Graff, emeritus professor at Columbia University; political media consultant Mandy Grunwald; talk show host Larry King; and Dan Rather of CBS News. (Panelist biographies immediately follows this summary.) The program opens with a screening of television footage of various presidential campaign speeches, national party conventions, and paid political advertisements, from the Truman era to the 1992 Clinton and Bush campaigns. The panelists then discuss the following topics: 1992 as a year that saw a redefinition of what is influential in media; the public's hunger for information in 1992 as a result of a bad economy; the media phenomenon of billionaire H. Ross Perot; whether it was appropriate for Clinton to "go around" traditional media institutions during his campaign; a brief historical overview of U.S. presidential campaigning and how it has evolved; the greater voice of the public in the 1992 campaign and the consequent move of candidates towards substantive issues; Clinton's appearance on "Arsenio Hall"; why Clinton embraced alternative media, according to Ms. Grunwald; the effect of Ross Perot on campaign strategies; why traditional journalists were late to acknowledge Ross Perot; the reserve of the Bush campaign in dealing with the changing television landscape of 1992; the dangers of forcing candidates to answer highly specific questions during their campaigns; how the Clinton campaign dealt with media attacks on his moral character and whether there was enough coverage of the morality issue in traditional media; how stories become legitimized in the media; the impact of talk radio on the 1992 presidential campaign; the impact of the 1992 national party conventions and presidential debates; and "make or break" moments during the 1992 campaign for each of the candidates.
Biographies Stephen Weiswasser is a senior vice president and general counsel and president, Multimedia Group, Capital Cities/ABC, Inc. Previously he was executive vice president of ABC News, with the responsibility of reorganizing news operations, and executive vice president of the ABC Television Network Group.
John Chancellor recently retired from NBC News where he began in 1950 and covered every presidential election since Eisenhower-Stevenson, providing commentary for conventions and election nights. Before anchoring "NBC Nightly News" for twelve years, he was the chief White House correspondent. Mr. Chancellor was a panelist for the 1960 debate between Kennedy and Nixon and was present when the Berlin Wall went up, and when it was torn down. His books include "Peril and Promise," and "The News Business," which he cowrote.
Phil Donahue is the host of the daytime television talk show "Donahue." He also cohosts the cable program "Pozner & Donahue" with journalist and political commentator Vladimir Pozner. Mr. Donahue was comoderator, with Ted Koppel, for the 1984 Democratic Presidential Debate. His honors include nineteen Emmys and a George Foster Peabody Award. Henry Graff, emeritus professor of history at Columbia University in New York City where he specializes in the United States presidency and foreign relations, is at work on a book of essays about the presidency. His extensive writings include "The Presidents: A Reference History, Deliberation and Decision on Peace," and articles in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Time, and Life.
Mr. Graff has also consulted on such television shows as CBS's "The American Parade" and ABC's "Our World." Mandy Grunwald is a political media consultant and partner with the new firm Grunwald, Eskew & Donilon. She served as media stategist and director of advertising for the Clinton/Gore presidential campaign. Her work included the championing of the "Arsenio" stategy -- the use of pop culture/talk show appearances to boost the campaign.
Larry King is host of CNN's "Larry King Live" and of Mutual Radio's "The Larry King Show." During the 1992 presidential campaign, he conducted extensive interviews with the major candidates on "Larry King Live." Mr. King is the recipient of the George Foster Peabody Award and the Cable ACE, among many honors.
Dan Rather has covered most major events over the past thirty years while at CBS News. He has been the anchor and managing editor of "CBS Evening News" since 1981. He has also been a correspondent for "60 Minutes," White House correspondent, anchor of "CBS Reports," and chief of CBS bureaus in London and Saigon. Mr. Rather has reported on the political scene in America since the Kennedy assassination, including interviews with the last seven presidents. He is the recipient of nine Emmy Awards, among other honors.
Details
- NETWORK: Paley
- DATE: October 7, 1993 12:30 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:35:12
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:30265
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Robert M. Batscha … Moderator
- Stephen Weiswasser … Moderator
- John Chancellor … Guest
- Phil Donahue … Guest
- Henry Graff … Guest
- Mandy Grunwald … Guest
- Larry King … Guest
- Dan Rather … Guest