Postman's 9th chapter in Amusing Ourselves to Death, entitled "Reach Out and Elect Someone", is an argument with two contentions. The first being that commercials have changed American discourse, and the second being that this has effected all of our political paradigms. Postman begins with two quotes: one from Edwin O'Connors novel The Last Hurrah which states "Politics...is the greatest spectator sport in America" (Postman 125), and one from Ronald Reagan "Politics...is just like show business" (Postman 125). He then juxtaposes politics and sport and refutes the claim by stating "if politics were a sporting event, there would be several virtues to attach to its name: clarity, honesty, excellence" (Postman 126). He precedes to go back to the first quote and link the two by saying "If politics is like show business, then the idea is not to pursue excellence, clarity or honesty but to appear as if you are, which is another matter altogether." He continues to say "And what the other matter is can be expressed in one word: adversing" (Postman 126). Postman then goes on to explain that our presidents are sold to us through advertising, and that this equates to capitalism, and that the commercial undermines these very ideals.
Or, in Postman's words: "By substituting images for claims, the pictorial commercial made emotional appeal, not tests of truth, the basis of consumer decisions. The distance between rationality and advertising is now so wide that it is difficult to remember that there once existed a connection between them. Today... the truth or falsity of an advertisers claim is simply not an issue" (Postman 128). At this point, Postman gets to the foundation of this chapter's argument. He states that: 1) The commercial is now a requirement in a political campaign (supported with an anecdote of his "minuscule role" in a New York senate campaign) (Postman 129) and that 2) Society has "accommodated itself to the political commercial" (by which he means the commercial has effected our mode of discourse through the ideas of brevity, pseudo-parables, simplicity and ease, instant-therapy, etc.) (Postman 131). Seeing as how those two facts are established, he then goes on to say that the visual-based commercial has turned the candidate into a celebrity, making his actual political skills (negotiation, knowledge in public affairs, executive skill) irrelevant by the candidate always making him or herself exactly what the audience wants in their commercials. Postman states "We are inclined to vote for those whose personality, family life, and style, as imaged on the screen, give back a better answer than the Queen (in snow white, referring to her famous "mirror, mirror " question) received". He goes on to say "those who would be gods refashion themselves into images the viewers would have them be" (Postman 134-135). He sums up his whole argument by saying "...just as the television commercial empties itself of authentic product information so that it can do its psychological work, image politics empties itself of authentic political substance for the same reason" (Postman pg 136). Finally, he states the implications this could have on the world. He first argues that image politics is empty of idealogical content but also content of a historical nature, and this could lead to the devaluing of history completely. He then revisits his Orwell v.s Huxley premise and says, while Orwell envisioned a dystopian entity similar to the "Ministry of Truth" would abolish all history and re-establish what we believe, that Huxley's vision of the human race re-creating history for itself as means of therapy and progress is more likely. He ends the chapter with a very real threat for our present, that the television, through it's change in our paradigms about discourse, is displacing books, therefore the whole- textual culture, and thus could lead to an Orwellian shift in society altogether (Postman 141).
Key Vocabulary
Selling of a President- At the back end of every fourth year, among our Wheat Thins and Stanley Steemer commercials there are ads for something far more influential to our everyday lives; advertisements endorsing a man who could be the future leader of our nation. It seems like television is the improper medium for politics due to the fact that tuning in is widely acknowledged as an entertaining activity no matter the channel or subject. The fact is that TV has overpowered written word and taken its place as the number one way to distribute information, which forces presidential candidates to make ads which portray them accompanied by Ford trucks, eagles and a waving American flag as to show their Americaninity.
Unrefutable Commercials- One of Postman's reinforcing examples in Chapter 9 is that "One can like or dislike a television commercial, of course. But one cannot refute it." What may seem like an obvious statement has a truth to it which is detrimental to modern Americans. Television promotions can blatantly lie about the utilities of a product, but this is only the first layer of the issue. If an advertisement begins with an average individual ringing off the many functions of their newest product, everyone would change the channel. Instead, promoters create a dramatic situation that revolves around whatever they're selling. Using this same formula with presidential candidates means that people are voting for whoever look better on the TV.
Brevity of Expression- In the 19th century, presidential debates carried on for as much as an entire day with intermissions in between candidates, which might be a daunting fact to a modern American. In debates today a candidate might have five minutes to discuss their entire plan on immigration reform or taxation, which may seem peculiar from an outside perspective. But in the Age of Show-Business the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players, and their sole purpose is to emanate confidence and vigor rather than state rational facts backed by evidence, and the greatest mistake a candidate can make is boring the people. The same is true in political commercials, except amplified tenfold. With a 20-second section between sitcoms, a candidate can't state his viewpoints, so he instead spreads scandalous rumors about the opposition or demonstrates what a swell guy he is by pairing with a wildlife foundation or something of equal political indifference.
Image Politics- For a long period of American history, a voter wouldn't know how their president appeared except for in photographs, and in all likelihood would never hear them speak. This may have been an advantage to Abraham Lincoln, who is documented as having an unusually high-pitched voice. More prominently, Postman states that Lincoln's wife was "in all likelihood a psychopath.." and Lincoln himself was "subject to fits of depression", making him an unlikely president if he were running in The Age of Show-Business. The first televised debate was between John Kennedy and Richard Nixon. This was the first time when everyone in America could see JFK's bright smile and strong posture, and also see Nixon's jowls and huge nose. It may be a stretch to say that this is why Kennedy won, but it is certainly one example of image politics. Postman states that "..on television the politician does not so much offer the audience an image of himself, as offer himself as an image of the audience." The president has become less of a representation of the beliefs of the American people, but more of an embodiment of all the personality features that intrigue people.
Refusal to Remember- Television is made in a way that viewers can jump in at any time throughout the day, or even the episode (hense the awkward recap characters make at the end of every line of commercials). If anything on television were to have a context, coming in in the middle would be impossible. this form of viewing fragments information to the point where it is useless.
Important Concepts and Vocabulary
Pseudo-Parable - A parable is defined as: "astatement or comment that conveys a meaning indirectly by the use of comparison, analogy, or the like" . Therefore, pseudo-parable is a ingenuine, hollow parable.
The commercial is therapy - The commercial creates a problem in the head of the viewer, as well as a fast and easy solution, thus acting as "instant therapy"
Political commercials make us believe that political problems are quick fixes through the above "instant therapy"
Accommodation to the Philosophy of the Political Commercial - Idea that Americans have adjusted their lives and paradigms to the ideas that the commercial represents and portrays.
Table of Contents
Summary
Postman's 9th chapter in Amusing Ourselves to Death, entitled "Reach Out and Elect Someone", is an argument with two contentions. The first being that commercials have changed American discourse, and the second being that this has effected all of our political paradigms. Postman begins with two quotes: one from Edwin O'Connors novel The Last Hurrah which states "Politics...is the greatest spectator sport in America" (Postman 125), and one from Ronald Reagan "Politics...is just like show business" (Postman 125). He then juxtaposes politics and sport and refutes the claim by stating "if politics were a sporting event, there would be several virtues to attach to its name: clarity, honesty, excellence" (Postman 126). He precedes to go back to the first quote and link the two by saying "If politics is like show business, then the idea is not to pursue excellence, clarity or honesty but to appear as if you are, which is another matter altogether." He continues to say "And what the other matter is can be expressed in one word: adversing" (Postman 126). Postman then goes on to explain that our presidents are sold to us through advertising, and that this equates to capitalism, and that the commercial undermines these very ideals.
Or, in Postman's words: "By substituting images for claims, the pictorial commercial made emotional appeal, not tests of truth, the basis of consumer decisions. The distance between rationality and advertising is now so wide that it is difficult to remember that there once existed a connection between them. Today... the truth or falsity of an advertisers claim is simply not an issue" (Postman 128). At this point, Postman gets to the foundation of this chapter's argument. He states that: 1) The commercial is now a requirement in a political campaign (supported with an anecdote of his "minuscule role" in a New York senate campaign) (Postman 129) and that 2) Society has "accommodated itself to the political commercial" (by which he means the commercial has effected our mode of discourse through the ideas of brevity, pseudo-parables, simplicity and ease, instant-therapy, etc.) (Postman 131). Seeing as how those two facts are established, he then goes on to say that the visual-based commercial has turned the candidate into a celebrity, making his actual political skills (negotiation, knowledge in public affairs, executive skill) irrelevant by the candidate always making him or herself exactly what the audience wants in their commercials. Postman states "We are inclined to vote for those whose personality, family life, and style, as imaged on the screen, give back a better answer than the Queen (in snow white, referring to her famous "mirror, mirror " question) received". He goes on to say "those who would be gods refashion themselves into images the viewers would have them be" (Postman 134-135). He sums up his whole argument by saying "...just as the television commercial empties itself of authentic product information so that it can do its psychological work, image politics empties itself of authentic political substance for the same reason" (Postman pg 136). Finally, he states the implications this could have on the world. He first argues that image politics is empty of idealogical content but also content of a historical nature, and this could lead to the devaluing of history completely. He then revisits his Orwell v.s Huxley premise and says, while Orwell envisioned a dystopian entity similar to the "Ministry of Truth" would abolish all history and re-establish what we believe, that Huxley's vision of the human race re-creating history for itself as means of therapy and progress is more likely. He ends the chapter with a very real threat for our present, that the television, through it's change in our paradigms about discourse, is displacing books, therefore the whole- textual culture, and thus could lead to an Orwellian shift in society altogether (Postman 141).
Key Vocabulary
Selling of a President- At the back end of every fourth year, among our Wheat Thins and Stanley Steemer commercials there are ads for something far more influential to our everyday lives; advertisements endorsing a man who could be the future leader of our nation. It seems like television is the improper medium for politics due to the fact that tuning in is widely acknowledged as an entertaining activity no matter the channel or subject. The fact is that TV has overpowered written word and taken its place as the number one way to distribute information, which forces presidential candidates to make ads which portray them accompanied by Ford trucks, eagles and a waving American flag as to show their Americaninity.
Unrefutable Commercials- One of Postman's reinforcing examples in Chapter 9 is that "One can like or dislike a television commercial, of course. But one cannot refute it." What may seem like an obvious statement has a truth to it which is detrimental to modern Americans. Television promotions can blatantly lie about the utilities of a product, but this is only the first layer of the issue. If an advertisement begins with an average individual ringing off the many functions of their newest product, everyone would change the channel. Instead, promoters create a dramatic situation that revolves around whatever they're selling. Using this same formula with presidential candidates means that people are voting for whoever look better on the TV.Brevity of Expression- In the 19th century, presidential debates carried on for as much as an entire day with intermissions in between candidates, which might be a daunting fact to a modern American. In debates today a candidate might have five minutes to discuss their entire plan on immigration reform or taxation, which may seem peculiar from an outside perspective. But in the Age of Show-Business the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players, and their sole purpose is to emanate confidence and vigor rather than state rational facts backed by evidence, and the greatest mistake a candidate can make is boring the people. The same is true in political commercials, except amplified tenfold. With a 20-second section between sitcoms, a candidate can't state his viewpoints, so he instead spreads scandalous rumors about the opposition or demonstrates what a swell guy he is by pairing with a wildlife foundation or something of equal political indifference.
Image Politics- For a long period of American history, a voter wouldn't know how their president appeared except for in photographs, and in all likelihood would never hear them speak. This may have been an advantage to Abraham Lincoln, who is documented as having an unusually high-pitched voice. More prominently, Postman states that Lincoln's wife was "in all likelihood a psychopath.." and Lincoln himself was "subject to fits of depression", making him an unlikely president if he were running in The Age of Show-Business. The first televised debate was between John Kennedy and Richard Nixon. This was the first time when everyone in America could see JFK's bright smile and strong posture, and also see Nixon's jowls and huge nose. It may be a stretch to say that this is why Kennedy won, but it is certainly one example of image politics. Postman states that "..on television the politician does not so much offer the audience an image of himself, as offer himself as an image of the audience." The president has become less of a representation of the beliefs of the American people, but more of an embodiment of all the personality features that intrigue people.
Refusal to Remember- Television is made in a way that viewers can jump in at any time throughout the day, or even the episode (hense the awkward recap characters make at the end of every line of commercials). If anything on television were to have a context, coming in in the middle would be impossible. this form of viewing fragments information to the point where it is useless.
Important Concepts and Vocabulary
Visual Presentation
Discussion Questions
Research
References
See Also
Contributors
Tai Gomez