The Spot: The Rise of Political Advertising on Television

by Edwin Diamond, Stephen Bates

In this third edition of their classic study of the political commercial, or "polispot," veteran media analysts Edwin Diamond and Stephen Bates reveal the backstage stories of the 1988 presidential campaign - the Ailes-Atwater media mastery, the Dukakis team's babel of T.V. voices, Willie Horton's transformation from convict to celebrity. The authors take a close critical look at the key political ads of 1988 and 1990, with particular attention to the subtexts directed at voters' racial attitudes and fears. They also preview the 30-second arguments and attacks of the 1992 media campaign. In a new chapter, Diamond and Bates examine the case against spots. They take a hard look at the societal ills that critics have blamed on T.V. campaigns, including mudslinging, misrepresentation, and malaise. They evaluate the proposals to ban or severely restrict the spot. They also assess the growing press scrutiny of T.V. campaigns, such as the use of "truth boxes" in newspapers. Their verdict on political ads will surprise many viewers - and cheer all friends of the First Amendment. As the media consultants and their handiwork grow more subtle and sophisticated, and as political campaigns increasingly exist only on the home screen, The Spot is an indispensable guide for the campaign season. Edwin Diamond is Professor of journalism at New York University, where he directs the News Study Group, and he is the media columnist for New York Magazine. His previous books include The Media The Changing Face of the News, 1985-1990. Stephen Bates, a lawyer, is a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. He is the author of If No News, Send Anecdotes of American Journalism.

432 pages, Paperback

First published May 16, 1984

About the author

Edwin Diamond was born in Chicago and was a reporter, writer and senior editor at Newsweek from 1958 to 1970, where he covered the space program. He later worked at The New York Daily News, Adweek magazine, New York magazine, The Washington Journalism Review and in television in Washington.

Among his professional awards was the Page One Award, which he received from the Newspaper Guilds of Chicago, Washington and New York.

Diamond received bachelor's and graduate degrees from the University of Chicago. He wrote 11 books, including The Rise and Fall of the Space Age (Doubleday, 1964), The Spot The Rise of Political Advertising on Television (M.I.T. Press, 1984), and Behind The Times Inside the New New York Times (Villard Books, 1993). His articles appeared in many publications, including Harper's, The New York Times Magazine, Esquire and The Nation.

Diamond was also a professor at the Department of Journalism at New York University from 1984 to 1997. He was a fellow, lecturer and professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1970 until 1985, where he was also head of the news study group and a frequent contributor to The New York Times.

Edwin Diamond, PhB'47, AM'49, a journalist, author, and NYU professor, died due to heart failure on July 10, 1997 at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan. He was 72. After starting his career as a science writer with the International News Service in Chicago, he joined Newsweek in 1957, becoming a senior editor in 1962. He was an on-air commentator for the Washington Post Co., editorial director of Adweek, and cofounder of the Washington Journalism Review. A WWII veteran and a Korean War Army intelligence officer, Diamond received both a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart. An associate editor of the New York Daily News in the early 1980s, and a media columnist for New York magazine for 10 years, Diamond was a visiting professor of political science at MIT before joining NYU's faculty in 1984. He wrote a dozen books and won numerous awards for writing, editing, and classroom teaching, as well as a 1994 Professional Achievement Award from the U of C's Alumni Association. He is survived by his wife, Adelina Lust Diamond, AB'47; three daughters, including Ellen Diamond Waldman, AB'73; a sister, Natalie Diamond Peiser, AB'50; and six grandchildren.

Reviews

[Max Lauf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, so I'm reading this a second time, because the first time I read it I was mostly drunk. I'm still mostly drunk! But reading it two times while drunk is better than one time while drunk. Right?

Why is this book rated so low? The dudes who wrote it are veteran journalists, and their comprehensiveness in securing interviews with survivors of the 20th century spot wars, and researching the recorded history where principals could not be located or were dead, is astounding.

There are even shot-by-shot descriptions of political ads that would make a 300-level film professor -- at least, and I can say this for certain because I've TA'd for several, who also taught at the doctoral level -- nod their head in approval. Shit is comprehensive and interdisciplinary.

If you don't rate this book five stars ... Well, in my estimation, you're judging it on what you perceive at its politics. Which, like: Dude, seriously? This book is totally apolitical. Though both writers are staffers at "LAMESTREAM LIBTARD MEDIA" outlets -- Diamond at the New York Times, and Bates at The Guardian -- if there's anything pejorative in this book about any party, it stems from that party's gaffes in re signing off on a misguided campaign. Both authors are ridiculously impartial.

And the people who shot those campaigns are there to be all, "Oh, dude, it was all about the money ..." and tell you their honest thoughts, decades and bottles of bourbon later. Diamond and Bates really know how to suck up to a source.

Which is where this book has the most value, and I think its authors would agree: When you objectively evaluate a bipartisan war in a text, any political judgement comes from the reader's snap-evaluation of what each party did and when and whatever. If you disagree with anything in this book, it's with your own hesitance at your own political beliefs.

So yeah ... As a mostly-former journalist and a registered Green, disillusioned with even that party's line, I can safely say that there totally isn't any bipartisan nonsense here. I have Right-Lib friends who agree. So ... suck it.

This book is the shizzzzz. With all those Zs. They've been earned.