The 2000 Presidential Campaign A Communication Perspective

Subjects:

• Communications » Political Communications
• Political Science » Presidential Studies

Reviews:

• Denton and colleagues have produced a valuable and insightful work on the 2000 presidential campaign that features both an in-depth scholarly perspective and a journalistic commitment to clear writing. It is a handy resource for students of political campaigning that will, no doubt, serve as a vital reference for studies of the 2000 campaign in the future. The chapters are filled with the context of the race, thoroughly reviewing the strategic and communication decisions of the Gore and Bush campaigns, the primary race that secured their nomination, and even the preprimary positioning that drastically limited the field they competed against. In addition to chapters on traditional campaign communication topics such as news coverage of the race and candidate advertising, chapters also consider campaigning on the Internet, debate strategy, party conventions, and the role of political culture in the race. While a number of authors here find fault with the Gore team, suggesting it squandered its advantageous position and produced a campaign reminiscent of Walter Mondale's, the ten chapters offer no easy answers or dominant themes in explaining this unique and complicated election contest. Recommended at all levels.
  —Choice January 2003

Table of Contents:

• Preface
• Five Pivotal Elements of the 2000 Presidential Campaign by Robert E. Denton Jr.
• And They All Came Calling: The Early Campaign of Election 2000 by Judith S. Trent
• The Rebels Revolt and the Empires Strike Back: A Tale of Two Insurgencies in the Presidential Nominations of 2000 by Henry C. Kenski
• Challenger and Incumbent Reversal in the 2000 Election by Craig Allen Smith and Neil Mansharamani
• One Nation, After All: Convention Frames and Political Culture by Rachel L. Holloway
• The 2000 Presidential Debates by Robert Friedenberg
• Digital Democracy 2000 by Rita Kirk Whillock and David E. Whillock
• Videostyle and Political Advertising Effects in the 2000 Presidential Campaign by Lynda Lee Kaid
• Network News Coverage of Campaign 2000: The Public Voice in Context by John C. Tedesco
• Explaining the Vote in a Divided Country: The Presidential Election of 2000 by Henry C. Kenski, Kate Kenski, and Brooks Aylor
• Selected Bibliography
• Index