The Selling of the President

 election, choosing a candidate for office in an organization by the vote of those enfranchised to cast a ballot .

Nominee
Party
Barack Obama
Democratic
Home state Illinois
Running mate Joe Biden
Electoral vote 365
States carried 28 + DC + NE-02
Popular vote 69,456,897[1]
Percentage 52.9%[1]
John McCain
Republican
Arizona
Sarah Palin
173
22
59,934,814[1]
45.7%[1]

 Barack Obama , U.S.
Senator from Illinois
 Hillary Clinton , U.S.
Senator from New York
 John Edwards , former
U.S. Senator from North
Carolina
 Bill Richardson , Governor of New Mexico
 Tom Vilsack , former
Governor of Iowa
 Dennis Kucinich , U.S.
Representative from Ohio
 Joe Biden , U.S. Senator from Delaware
 Mike Gravel , former U.S.
Senator from Alaska
 Christopher Dodd , U.S.
Senator from Connecticut
 Evan Bayh , U.S. Senator from Indiana

Senator Barack Obama of
Illinois
Senator Hillary Rodham
Clinton of New York

 John McCain , U.S. Senator from Arizona
 Mike Huckabee , former
Governor of Arkansas
 Mitt Romney , former Governor of Massachusetts
 Ron Paul , U.S. Representative from Texas
 Tom Tancredo , former U.S.
Representative from Colorado
 Tommy Thompson , former
Governor of Wisconsin
 Fred Thompson , former U.S.
Senator from Tennessee
 Duncan Hunter , U.S.
Representative from California
 Rudy Giuliani , former Mayor of
New York City
 Alan Keyes , former U.S.
Ambassador from Maryland
 Sam Brownback , U.S. Senator from Kansas
 Jim Gilmore , former Governor of Virginia

Senator John McCain of
Arizona
Former Governor Mike
Huckabee of Arkansas

 Barack Obama campaigns in Akron ,
Ohio on February 23,
2008

 John McCain and
Sarah Palin onstage with Todd Palin , Cindy
McCain and Robert
Duvall in Albuquerque ,
New Mexico ,
September 6, 2008

 Barack Obama and
John McCain, together on March 4,
2009, a month and a half after Obama's inauguration.

 According to required campaign filings as reported by the Federal Election Commission
(FEC), 148 candidates for all parties collectively raised $1,644,712,232 and spent
$1,601,104,696 for the primary and general campaigns combined through November 24,
2008. The amounts raised and spent by the major candidates, according to the same source, were as follows:

Candidate (Party) Barack Obama (D) John McCain (R) Ralph Nader (I)
Amount raised $532,946,511 $379,006,485 $4,496,180
Amount spent $513,557,218 $346,666,422 $4,187,628
Votes 69,498,215 59,948,240 738,720
Average spent per vote $7.39 $5.78 $5.67
 Excludes spending by independent expenditure concerns.
Source: Federal Election Commission

 Photo of senator
Clinton holding a baby

 Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Sen.
Barack Obama (L) speaks at a rally while
Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) looks on at the College of Charleston in
Charleston, SC January
10, 2008. Kerry, the
2004 Democratic candidate endorsed
Senator Obama for the
White House.

 McCain sticking out his tongue at the end of the third presedential debate after walking off stage the wrong way

Senator McTongue

 The 37th President of the United States
(1969-1974). He visited China (1972) and established relations with U.S.S.R. When
Congress recommended three articles of impeachment for Nixon’s involvement in the Watergate scandal, he resigned from office (August 9,1974)

 The 35th president of the United States
(1961-1963). He became the youngest presidency (1960). Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas, on Nov. 22,
1963.

 The 39th President of the United States, he is credited with establishing energyconservation measures.

 The 38th President of the United States
(1974-1977),who was appointed Vice
President on the resignation of Spiro
Agnew(1973) and became President after Richard Nixon’s resignation over
Watergate scandal.

 The 40th president of the United States
(1981-1989). He was an actor turned politician.

 American politician, a conservative Republic, he served as U.S. senator from Arizona
(1953-1965 and
1969-1987) and ran unsuccessfully for
President in 1964.

 Lyndon B. Johnson,
1964, Vice-President and Chairman of the
National Space
Council . Fatherly image

 The 17th president of the United States
(1865-1869). Elected
Vice president (1864), he succeeded the assassinated
Abraham Lincoln as
President in 1864.

 the Democratic nominee for president in
1972, currently is the U.S. representative to the United Nations' Food and
Agricultural Organization, where he is helping to develop a plan to address the food needs of 500 million people -- half the world's underfed -- by 2015. He was elected to the U.S. House in 1956. In the
Senate, he led the expansion of the food stamp program.

 Senator George McGovern won the 1972
Democratic nomination for president.

 AP , largest news-gathering organization in the world. With reporters and photographers working in more than 200 bureaus around the world, AP is one of the chief sources of news for the world’s press.
It provides news stories, photographs, graphic, and broadcast services to more than 1700 newspapers and about 6000 radio and television stations in the United
States.

 American general and the 34 th president
( 1953-1961). As supreme commander of the Allied
Expeditionary
Force(1943-1945)he launched the invasion of Normandy (June 6
1944) and oversaw the final defeat of
Germany (1945).

 The 32 nd president ( 1933-1945), Governor of New York (1929-1932), he ran for
President with the promise of a New Deal for the American people. His administration was marked by relief programs, measures to increase employment and assist industrial and agricultural recovery from the Depression, and World War II. He was the only U.S.
President to be reelected three times.

 Franklin Roosevelt with Ruthie Bie and
Fala at Hilltop
Cottage in Hyde Park,
1941.

 Franklin Roosevelt asks Congress to declare war on Japan,
December 8, 1941.

 President Fanklin D.
Roosevelt signing the declaration of war against Japan,
December 8, 1941.

 "It was because of what John Wayne said about what we are and what we can be that his great and deep love of
America can be returned in full
measure".... Jimmy Carter

 1. PR : public relations
 2. IQ : an abbreviation of Intelligence
Quotient. A General Intelligence Quotient
Score (IQ score) is a statistically derived number which indicates relative and comparative abilities that can be used to obtain academic skills and knowledge.

 The Associated Press: 美联社
 Watergate: some republicans broke into the Democratic Party’s National
Committee offices in this building but were discovered and arrested. This political scandal led to Nixon’s resignation in 1974. the word Watergate has become synonymous with corruption and scandal.

 水门事件 (Watergate Affair) 指美国共和党政府在
１９７２年总统竞选运动中的非法活动暴露后的
政治丑闻。
 水门是华盛顿的一座综合大厦。１９７２年６
月１７日有５个人因闯入大厦内的民主党全国总
部被捕。随后的调查表明，尼克松政府为破坏选
举的进程采取了一系列的行动，闯入水门只是其
中之一。结果导致政府的几个官员锒铛入狱以及
美国历史上破天荒第一遭出现的总统辞职。

 1972 年 6 月 17 日， 5 名共和党员在华盛顿水门大厦
民主党全国总部办公室进行窃听活动，被警方当
场逮捕。审讯结果证明他们是为共和党争取总统
连任委员会工作的。为不影响连任，当时美国总
统尼克松施加压力下令掩盖事实。 11 月 7 日，尼克
松在大选中获胜实现连任。
 1973 年 3 月，一名被告为了免于被判长期监禁，
供认了有人施加压力，自己在审讯中作了伪证。
迫于压力，尼克松不得不宣布同意司法部进行调
查。调查结果向全国公布后，舆论一片哗然。尼
克松总统 8 月 8 日宣布辞职，成为美国历史上第一
个被迫辞职的总统。

 ２００５年５月３１日，美国联邦调查局前副局
长马克 · 费尔特承认自己就是“水门事件”中那个
曾被称为“深喉”的人，曾向美国《华盛顿邮报》
记者提供尼克松总统“水门事件”的关键线索。
１９７２年，美国《华盛顿邮报》记者鲍勃 · 伍德
沃德和卡尔 · 伯恩斯依据内线“深喉”的消息，捅
开“水门事件”的内幕，导致当时的美国总统尼
克松辞职下台。两名记者一直拒绝透露当时线人
的身份，但是总编辑西蒙斯引用了当时一部知名
色情电影《深喉》的片名，作为告密者的化名。

 This text can be divided into three parts.
1.Part I is the thesis of the author
2.Part II is the discussion of the impact of television on American presidential election
3.Part III is the conclusion drawn by the author

paragraph 1
 The author’s thesis: presidential election has been determined largely by heavy spot buying on electronic media.
 The following question may be asked:
1.
Why does the campaign strategist say “I can elect any person to office if he has $
60,000, an IQ of at least 120, and can keep his mouth shut?

 Because he believes that advertising and public relations plays a decisive role in the presidential election.
 Generate : cause ( sth. Esp. an emotion or situation )to arise or come about
The Employment Minister said the reforms would generate new jobs.
John is recalling the excitement generated by the visit to the pyramids in Egypt.

 Quote : repeat what is said or written by someone Heavy teaching loads are often quoted as a bad influence on research.
The premier was quoted as saying that he would resist all attempts to disintegrated his nation.
Heavy teaching loads are often quoted as a bad influence on research.

 Campaign: a series of actions intended to achieve a particular result relating to politics or business, or a social improvement campaign for/against
 a campaign for equal rights
 launch/mount a campaign (=plan, organize, and begin a campaign) Police have launched a campaign to crack down on drug dealers.
 a series of battles, attacks etc intended to achieve a particular result in a war

 Information specialists’ ability to arouse positive public interest or notice has mainly decided the presidential election.
 总统的选举在很大程度上取决于信息专家
制造良好的公众效应的能力。

 to give information about something to the public, so that they know about it
 television's failure to publicize the unemployment issue well/widely/highly publicized (=receiving a lot of attention)
His visit was highly publicized.

 the attention that someone or something gets from newspapers, television etc
 Standards in education have received much publicity over the last few years. bad/good/unwelcome etc publicity It's important to gain good publicity for the school. The adverse publicity had damaged sales.
 the business of making sure that people know about a new product, film etc or what a particular famous person is doing
 The Government has launched a publicity campaign

 the publicity department
 宣传部
 free publicity
 免费宣传
 publicity on TV
 电视上的广告
 newspaper publicity
 新闻广告
 a publicity agent
 广告代理人

 avoid [shun] publicity
 避免惹人注意
 give publicity to sth. (=give sth. publicity)
 宣扬某事 , 公布某事
 in the full blaze of publicity
 在众目睽睽之下
 in the publicity of the street
 在街道上大家都看得见的情况下
 seek publicity
求名 ; 出风头
 slide publicity
幻灯广告

 ▶ TV/RADIO ◀ a short period of time when someone can speak or perform on radio or television
 He was given a 30-second spot just after the news. a guest spot on the Tonight Show
 Close-up : a photograph or part of a film in which the camera seems to have been very close to the picture it took
 close-up of a close-up of her face
 in close-up
 Much of the movie is shot in close up.

 Supplant : to take the place of a person or thing so that they are no longer used, no longer in a position of power etc (replace)
 Barker was soon supplanted as party leader.
The word processor has largely supplanted electric typewriters.
 Trams in London have been supplanted by buses.
伦敦的电车已经由公共汽车取代了。

 In recent years, the publicity has been replaced by the large amount of TV or radio programs which are bought with much money.
 近些年，这些公众效应已被重金购买的大
量媒体宣传所取代。

paragraph 2-11
 Questions to be considered: :
1.
What is the most influential medium in an election campaign and why? Does it work in all elections?
2.
How does the author start his argumentation?
3.
What is the function of the two questions in
Paragraph 4? （ rhetorical question ）
4.
Why does the author mention the four presidents in Paragraph 5?

5.
Why does the author say “since the 1960 presidential debates we have elected people, not platforms”?
6.
What is the difference between print information and television information?
7.
What is the main idea of Paragraph 8?
8.
What is the author’s opinion on the power of television?

 based on scientific testing or practical experience, not on ideas
 Opposite: theoretical, hypothetical empirical evidence
 + analysis, approach, basis, data, evidence, fact, investigation, observation, question, reality, research, study, support, test, work

 Clinch : to finally agree on something or get something after trying very hard
 clinch a match/championship/victory etc
 The two companies clinched the deal quickly.
两家公司很快地成交了。
 The offer of more money clinched it for her.
She agree to undertake the job as the assistant to the managing director.
 " 由于薪酬增加而达成协议 , 她同意承担总经理助手的工作。 "

 clinch it
 informal if an event, situation, process etc clinches it, it makes someone finally decide to do something that they were already thinking of doing
 We'd talked about moving, and the burglary clinched it for us.
 [intransitive] if two people clinch, they hold each other's arms tightly, especially when they are fighting
 N.
a situation in which two people who love each other hold each other tightly

 Probably based on the same reason, JC beat GF in the 1976 debates with very close number of votes, and Ronald
Reagon won the 1980 debates.

 Exposure: the publicizing of information or an event
 Their sporting reputation has suffered enormously from Henry’s exposure.
 Versus : against
Brazil versus Argentina is turning out to be a surprisingly well-matched competition.

 ▶ MOVE FROM A FIXED POINT ◀
 [intransitive and transitive] to make regular movements forwards and backwards or from one side to another while hanging from a particular point, or to make something do this
 Let your arms swing as you walk. a sign swinging in the wind He was swinging his bag back and forth . She swung her legs from side to side .
 ▶ CHANGE OPINIONS/EMOTIONS ◀
 emotions or opinions swing, or if something swings them, they change quickly to the opposite of what they were
 swing from something to something
 His mood could swing from joy to despair.
 Do campaign gifts swing votes ?

 The boy swung on the rope tied to a tree.
 这个男孩坐在一根拴在树上的绳子上荡秋千
 The soldiers came swinging down the street.
士兵们摇摇摆摆地沿着街道走来。
 She swung from happiness to tears.
 她转喜为悲。
 have full swing
自由行动 , 不受拘束 ; 放荡不羁 ; 为所欲为
 What one loses on the swings one gains on the roundabouts.
[ 谚 ] 失之东隅 , 收之桑榆。

 According to the AP , Ford’s TV programs during the 1976 campaign could probably change the decision of more than 100,000 voters a day during the last few months of the campaign.

 to say words for someone else to write down dictate a letter/memo to somebody
 to tell someone exactly what they must do or how they must behave
 dictate to The media cannot be allowed to dictate to the government.
 to control or influence sth. determine
 The laws of physics dictate that what goes up must come down.
 The massive publicity dictated a response from the city government.

 Be at home : feel comfortable and at ease in a place or situation
 He appeared pleased to see us, so we soon felt quite at home.
 Stage : organize and participate in
At the end of this year, the government staged a huge military parade.
The workers have staged a number of strikes in protest at the republic’s declaration of independence.

stage a play/stage a strike stage a tit -for -tat struggle against ...
 同 ...
进行针锋相对的斗争
 stage a comeback
[ 美 ] 卷土重来 ; 再度走红 ; 复辟 ; ( 花 ) 重开
 put sb. on the stage
 stage effect stage direction
剧本中的演出说明
 stage director
 a stage hog
[ 美 ] 爱到舞台正面去表现自已的演员

 when a subject or event is reported on television or radio, or in newspapers, esp. how much time and space is giving to reporting it
 media/press etc coverage live coverage of the match (=the match is broadcast at the same time that it is happening)
 Too much coverage is given to entertainment rather than political issue

 the state of holding an official position, especially in politics, or the time when someone holds an official position
 Frankly, this is where the power of the incumbency is strong.
 This attitude is long-standing and transcends party lines, having more to do with incumbency than partisanship.

 a stage for people to stand on when they are making a speech, performing etc
 the main ideas and aims of a political party, especially the ones that they state just before an election (plank)
 a strong women's rights platform
 a chance for someone to express their opinions, especially their political opinions
 platform for The conference provides a platform for people on the left wing of the party.

 a natural ability to attract and interest other people and make them admire you
 He lacks charisma.
 Some say his lack of charisma will keep him from becoming president.
 Rice had a powerful and original vision, and the charisma to instill that vision in others.

 to make something that is spoken or written shorter, by not giving as much detail or using fewer words to give the same information
 condense something into something
 This whole chapter could be condensed into a few paragraphs.
 to make a liquid thicker by removing some of the water condensed soup/milk
 a type of thick sweet milk sold in cans

 Adj. very impressive
 a mountainous area with spectacular scenery a spectacular success
 very sudden, unexpected, or extreme
 The news caused a spectacular fall in the stock market.
 N. an event or performance that is very large and impressive
 a television spectacular

 be a testament to something
 proving or showing very clearly that something exists or is true
 Old Testament : the first part of the Christian
Bible containing ancient Hebrew writings about the time before the birth of Christ
 New Testament : the part of the Bible which describes the life of Jesus Christ and what he taught, and the life of the first Christians

 1. the type of activity or subject that a person or organization seems most interested in and gives most attention to
 orientation towards/to
 2. the political opinions or religious beliefs that someone has political/religious ~
 3. sexual orientation
 the fact that sb. is heterosexual or homosexual
 Discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation is still far too widespread.

 4. a period of time during which people are trained and prepared for a new job or course of study
 This is orientation week for all the new students.
 5. the angle or position of an object, or the direction in which it is facing

 bog somebody/something ↔ down phrasal verb
 1. if a process or plan becomes bogged down , it is delayed so that no progress is made
 Talks to settle the pay dispute have become bogged down.
 bog somebody/something ↔ down in
 Don't let yourself get bogged down in minor details.
 2. if something gets bogged down, it becomes stuck in soft ground and is unable to move
 The car got bogged down in the mud.
 Bog roll: toilet paper

 1. to express strong disapproval of someone or something, especially in public
 Darwin's theories about evolution were denounced by many people.
 2. to give information to the police or other authority about someone's illegal political activities
 denounce somebody to somebody
 She denounced him to the secret police.

 causing harm or damage ( damaging )
 detrimental to
 Smoking is detrimental to your health.
 the detrimental effect of pollution on the environment

 a way of describing something by saying it is much bigger, smaller, worse etc than it actually is ( exaggeration )
 It was not hyperbole to call it the worst storm in twenty years.
 hyperbolic adjective

 the use of words or pictures to describe ideas or actions in poems, books, films etc
 imagery of, visual imagery
 the imagery of love
 Their dreams commonly involved complex stories with visual imagery .
 Empirical work will be carried out to develop and standardise a new research technique using visual imagery to probe beliefs about pain.

 1. a written or printed copy of a speech, conversation etc transcript of
 A transcript of the tapes was presented in court.
 2 American English an official college document that shows a list of a student's classes and the results they received

 1. produced or existing in large quantities
 He made profuse apologies . Profuse sweating is one of the symptoms of heat exhaustion.
 2. profusely adverb The wound was bleeding profusely.
 3. n. a very large amount of something
 profusion of / in profusion

paragraph 12
 The concluding part.
 The following question could be asked:
1.
What does the author mean by “today’s burning issue is tomorrow’s historical footnote”?

 He intends to put across the idea that the important issue being talked about now in presidential elections will be of little significance in future, so it is far more important to know what kind of person we are choosing to be our president.

 …become aware of what kind of person we are choosing as our new president

 In recent years that publicity has been supplanted by heavy spot buying on electronic media.( para. 1)
 The most talked-about medium in
American politics is television. (para. 2)
 Television affords us that opportunity in a way no other medium can. (para.12)

 Positive examples :
Kennedy, Nixon, Carter, Reagan the purpose is to show the effectiveness of television in getting more publicity for presidential candidates.
 Negative examples :
Adlai Stevenson, Hubert Humphrey, Richard Nixon the purpose is to prove the importance of the candidates’ public image on TV.