Abstract
The term ‘media events’ refers to those live broadcasts of ‘historic’ occasions, whether ceremonial or disruptive, that mobilize an entire nation or the whole world. Normatively, the genre tells us that there is nothing more important to do than go home and watch television! The first such broadcast was the coronation of Elizabeth in 1953, when television was introduced (Dayan and Katz, 1994, pp. 31–2). Not long after, in 1960, there followed an equally compelling broadcast, the pre-election presidential debates between John Kennedy and Richard Nixon that were viewed simultaneously by almost two-thirds of Americans and have served as a model for subsequent debates in the United States and throughout the democratic world (Katz and Feldman, 1962 pp. 130–5).1
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2015 Elihu Katz and Menahem Blondheim
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Katz, E., Blondheim, M. (2015). On Seeing Both Sides: Notes on the 2012 Presidential Debates. In: Coleman, S., Moss, G., Parry, K. (eds) Can the Media Serve Democracy?. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137467928_13
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137467928_13
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-50011-6
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-46792-8
eBook Packages: Palgrave Media & Culture CollectionLiterature, Cultural and Media Studies (R0)