Eisenhower's Secret Strategy: Television Planning in the 1952 Campaign

Abstract

Discusses the US 1952 presidential campaign, which was the first using television advertising and politics nationally. Observes the use of the differing advertising agencies used by the Democrats and Republicans for their campaigns, and gives a breakdown of the money spent on this. Shows that Eisenhower's party spent more on both radio and television, including network time, with the planning for this done by the TV Plans Board. Posits that Eisenhower's victory was certainly helped a little by the advertising, plus his own personality. Concludes that the medium of television will prove to be an important one in future campaigns in every area of the world, as it gave voters the chance to see close‐ups of candidates at work, at ease, under stress, on‐ and off‐guard in moments of triumph and defeat.

Citation

Barkin, S.M. (1986), "Eisenhower's Secret Strategy: Television Planning in the 1952 Campaign", European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 20 No. 5, pp. 18-28. https://doi.org/10.1108/EUM0000000004645