Barack Obama’s stunning victory in the 2008 presidential election will go down as one of the more pivotal in American history. Given America’s legacy of racism, how could a relatively untested first-term senator with an African father defeat some of the giants of American politics?
In The Obama Victory, Kate Kenski, Bruce Hardy, and Kathleen Hall Jamieson draw upon the best voter data available, The National Annenberg Election Survey, as well as interviews with key advisors to each campaign, to illuminate how media, money, and messages shaped the 2008 election. They explain how both sides worked the media to reinforce or combat images of McCain as too old and Obama as not ready; how Obama used a very effective rough-and-tumble radio and cable campaign that was largely unnoticed by the mainstream media; how the Vice Presidential nominees impacted the campaign; how McCain’s age and Obama’s race affected the final vote, and much more.
Briskly written and filled with surprising insights, The Obama Victory goes beyond opinion to offer the most authoritative account available of precisely how and why Obama won the presidency.
Chapter One – The Economy and the Unpopular Incumbent
Chapter Two – McSame versus the Tax-and-Spend Liberal
Chapter Three – McCain: Out of Touch/Too Old
Chapter Four – Obama: Not Ready to Lead
Chapter Five – Period One: McCain Gains Energy (June 7-August 22)
Chapter Six – Period Two: Impact of the Vice Presidential Selections and Conventions (August 23-September 9)
Chapter Seven – The Impact of Sarah Palin and Joseph Biden
Chapter Eight – Period Three: The Campaigns Confront the Economic Collapse (September 10-October 14)
Chapter Nine – Period Four: The McCain Surge (October 15-28)
Chapter Ten – Period Five: Be Very Very Afraid/Be Reassured (October 29-November 4)
Chapter Eleven – Absentee and Early Voting in the 2008 Campaign
Chapter Twelve – Spending Differences and the Role of Microtargeting
Chapter Thirteen – The Effect of Messages
