Republic of spin : an inside history of the American presidency

The most powerful political tool of the modern presidency is control of the message and the image. In Republic of Spin—a vibrant history covering more than one hundred years of politics—presidential historian David Greenberg recounts the rise of the White House spin machine, from Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama. His sweeping, startling narrative takes us behind the scenes to see how the tools and techniques of image making and message craft work. We meet Woodrow Wilson convening the first White House press conference, Franklin Roosevelt huddling with his private pollsters, Ronald Reagan's aides crafting his nightly news sound bites, and George W. Bush staging his "Mission Accomplished" photo-op. We meet, too, the backstage visionaries who pioneered new ways of gauging public opinion and mastering the media—figures like George Cortelyou, TR's brilliantly efficient press manager; 1920s ad whiz Bruce Barton; Robert Montgomery, Dwight Eisenhower's canny TV... A brilliant, fast-moving narrative history of the leaders who have defined the modern American presidency.Bob Woodward In Republic of Spin a vibrant history covering more than one hundred years of politicspresidential historian David Greenberg recounts the rise of the White House spin machine, from Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama. His sweeping, startling narrative takes us behind the scenes to see how the tools and techniques of image making and message craft work. We meet Woodrow Wilson convening the first White House press conference, Franklin Roosevelt huddling with his private pollsters, Ronald Reagans aides crafting his nightly news sound bites, and George W. Bush staging his Mission Accomplished photo-op. We meet, too, the backstage visionaries who pioneered new ways of gauging public opinion and mastering the mediafigures like George Cortelyou, TRs brilliantly efficient press manager; 1920s ad whiz Bruce Barton; Robert Montgomery, Dwight Eisenhowers canny TV coach; and of course the key spinmeisters of our own times, from Roger Ailes to David Axelrod. Greenberg also examines the profound debates Americans have waged over the effect of spin on our politics. Does spin help our leaders manipulate the citizenry? Or does it allow them to engage us more fully in the democratic project? Exploring the ideas of the centurys most incisive political critics, from Walter Lippmann and H. L. Mencken to Hannah Arendt and Stephen Colbert, Republic of Spin illuminates both the power of spin and its limitationsits capacity not only to mislead but also to lead. 24 pages of illustrations A world of spin The age of publicity. Theodore Roosevelt and the public presidency ; William McKinley and the passing of the old order ; The rise of public opinion ; "The fair-haired" ; Muckraking and its critics ; The passion of Upton Sinclair ; The dawn of public relations ; Wilson speaks ; Pitiless publicity ; The press agents' war ; The journey of George Creel ; Disillusionment The age of ballyhoo. Return to normalcy ; Walter Lippmann and the problem of the majority ; The likes and dislikes of H.L. Mencken ; Bruce Barton and the soul of the 1920s ; "Silent Cal" ; The overt acts of Edward Bernays ; Master of emergencies The age of communication. Tuned to Roosevelt ; Nazism and propaganda ; The dark side of radio ; Campaigns, Inc. ; The Wizard of Washington ; The road to war ; The facts and figures of Archibald MacLeish ; Propaganda and the "good war" The age of news management. The underestimation of Harry Truman ; George Gallup's democracy ; Psychological warfare ; Eisenhower answers America ; Salesmanship and secrecy ; The TV president ; "Atoms for peace" ; Vance Packard and the anxiety of persuasion The age of image making. The unmaking of presidential mystique ; The great debates ; The politics of image ; The Kennedy moment ; News management in Camelot ; Crisis ; "Let us continue" ; The credibility gap ; The new politics The age of spin. The permanent campaign arrives ; The Reagan apotheosis ; Spinning out of control ; George W. Bush and the "truthiness" problem ; Barack Obama and the spin of no spin. "The most powerful political tool of the modern presidency is control of the message and the image. The Greeks called it 'rhetoric, ' Gilded Age politicians called it 'publicity, ' and some today might call it 'lying, ' but spin is a built-in feature of American democracy. Presidents deploy it to engage, persuade, and mobilize the people-- in whom power ultimately resides. Presidential historian David Greenberg recounts the development of the White House spin machine from Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama. His sweeping narrative introduces us to the visionary advisers who taught politicians to manage the press, gauge public opinion, and master the successive new media of radio, television, and the Internet. We see Wilson pioneering the press conference, FDR scheming with his private pollsters, Reagan's aides hatching sound bites, and George W. Bush staging his extravagant photo-ops. We also see the past century's most provocative political critics, from H.L. Mencken to Stephen Colbert, grappling with the ambiguous role of spin in a democracy-- its capacity for misleading but also for leading"--Provided by publisher. "The most powerful political tool of the modern presidency is control of the message and the image. The Greeks called it 'rhetoric, ' Gilded Age politicians called it 'publicity, ' and some today might call it 'lying, ' but spin is a built-in feature of American democracy. Presidents deploy it to engage, persuade, and mobilize the people--in whom power ultimately resides. Presidential historian David Greenberg recounts the development of the White House spin machine from Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama. His sweeping narrative introduces us to the visionary advisers who taught politicians to manage the press, gauge public opinion, and master the successive new media of radio, television, and the Internet. We see Wilson pioneering the press conference, FDR scheming with his private pollsters, Reagan's aides hatching sound bites, and George W. Bush staging his extravagant photo-ops. We also see the past century's most provocative political critics, from H.L. Mencken to Stephen Colbert, grappling with the ambiguous role of spin in a democracy--its capacity for misleading but also for leading."--Publisher information "The most powerful political tool of the modern presidency is control of the message and the image. The Greeks called it 'rhetoric,' Gilded Age politicians called it 'publicity,' and some today might call it 'lying,' but spin is a built-in feature of American democracy. Presidents deploy it to engage, persuade, and mobilize the people...in whom power ultimately resides. Presidential historian David Greenberg recounts the development of the White House spin machine from Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama. His sweeping narrative introduces us to the visionary advisers who taught politicians to manage the press, gauge public opinion, and master the successive new media of radio, television, and the Internet. We see Wilson pioneering the press conference, FDR scheming with his private pollsters, Reagan's aides hatching sound bites, and George W. Bush staging his extravagant photo-ops. We also see the past century's most provocative political critics, from H. L. Mencken to Stephen Colbert, grappling with the ambiguous role of spin in a democracy...its capacity for misleading but also for leading"...Provided by publisher In Republic of Spin - a vibrant history covering more than one hundred years of politics - presidential historian David Greenberg recounts the rise of the White House spin machine, from Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama. His sweeping, startling narrative takes us behind the scenes to see how the tools and techniques of image making and message craft work. We meet Woodrow Wilson convening the first White House press conference, Franklin Roosevelt huddling with his private pollsters, Ronald Reagan s aides crafting his nightly news sound bites, and George W. Bush staging his "Mission Accomplished" photo-op. We meet, too, the backstage visionaries who pioneered new ways of gauging public opinion and mastering the media - figures like George Cortelyou, TR s brilliantly efficient press manager; 1920s ad whiz Bruce Barton; Robert Montgomery, Dwight Eisenhower s canny TV coach; and of course the key spinmeisters of our own times, from Roger Ailes to David Axelrod A history of the political publicity methods of the past century documents the rise of the White House "spin machine" to illuminate the art of image making and message craft, citing the activities of presidents and back-stage strategists as well as ongoing debates about the impact of spin on politics