Television's Negative Effect On Presidential Elections

567 Words3 Pages
Television has had a negative effect on presidential elections since it became an important factor in televised debates. Before television played a crucial role in the elections, candidates were not judged as much by looks but more by their political views and ideals. When in the 1960's televised debates made it easier for more Americans to get information on the candidates, it has also made the elections a image contest. Elections used to be about who had the more popular political views and ideals. Now that television is playing a crucial role in elections candidates not only have to sound good but look good too. "because of television's celebrity system, Presidents are losing their distinctiveness as social actors and hence are often judged by standards…show more content…
They aren't concerned about the issues, just the most views. "All of us in commercial television are confronted by a difficult choice that commercialism imposes. Do we deliberately aim for the lowest common denominator, thereby assuring ourselves of the largest possible audience but producing nothing but cotton candy for the mind, or do we tackle the difficult subjects as creatively as we can, knowing that we may lose much of the mass audience?" (source F) TV producers know that their audience isn't going to watch a boring debate, so they take out the important issues to get the highest rating. This is just another example of how TV has had a negative impact on Presidential elections. Whether it be image or ratings, television has had a negative effect on presidential elections and America may be suffering for it. As a nation we are more likely to choose the better looking candidate even if we aren't so sure about his views and ideals. Elections used to be all about views and ideals and now it has become a popularity contest, of who has the best hair and who gets the better ratings on

More about Television's Negative Effect On Presidential Elections

Open Document