When I was in college, my professor of Political Science said it was a common misconception the U.S. had three branches of government. According to him, there are not three but, four. The fourth being the mass media. He cited the infamous "Tank Photo" of then presidential candidate Mike Dukakis. The photo was arranged by Dukakis and his team to boost public opinion and that if elected, he would be a strong military leader. The strategy backfired and the Bush campaign used the photo of Dukakis to criticize the attempt to sway public opinion. The rest is history.
Back then, one could argue there were only three types of mass media. Television, print, and radio. Yes there were movies, music, art etc. However, I am focusing on these three since each represented a technological leap in political communication. The printing press was invented in the West in the fifteenth century. The radio was invented just before the turn of the nineteenth century. Television shortly after World War I. Each technology would have influence over public opinion. Politicians (among others) [with proper understanding] could then utilize this technology to for whichever need they saw fit.
Now we have social media.
In this episode. I talk to my dumb sister about how I find the former president's use of the social media fascinating. Before the advent of facebook, twitter, snapchat etc. Many people relied on the traditional media (the big three, print, tv, radio) to stay informed. Now, with social media, anyone can be journalist. A simple photograph taken on a cell phone can be published online to any/all social media platforms and shared hundreds of millions of times over before your local news outlet's nightly broadcast. Said photograph is a primary source.
The balance of information has shifted.
The president is now in your pocket. Your wife's purse. Your daughters tablet. Anytime he tweets, you can be notified of exactly what is being said. Thus bypassing the filters of traditional media.
Based on my professor's example, the mass media, specifically television, had a huge negative impact on the Dukakis campaign. It's influence swayed the election results in favor of Bush Sr.
Politicians used to buy ad space and air time wherever they needed to in order to sway public opinion. They still do but, a twitter account is free. So is a Facebook (Meta?) account. You still have to buy a news paper or walk past a newsstand to see the headline. You still have to turn on the TV at the exact time of the broadcast to hear the days top stories. Same for the radio. Social media is always there.
Rather than pay millions for political ads, the former president circumvented control of the traditional media and rewrote the narrative with the use of twitter. Direct access to the public without traditional media spin on the message. While Barack Obama and Hilary Clinton had twitter accounts, I don't think their teams were able to successfully utilize them as well as the former president did.
What will be the next form of mass media the next president utilizes to sway public opinion?
Time will tell.
Edward R. Murrow
Bill of Rights