The 1952 presidential election lead to a new type of campaign. The presidential candidates were now utilizing TV as a platform for delivering their rhetoric. The 1952 election was the advent of political cartoon ads being used on TV as well. The ad I am choosing to analyze is the “Platform Double-Talk” from the 1952 presidential campaign. Democratic candidate Adlai Stevenson was employing this ad to attack the credibility of the Republican party and his opponent, Dwight Eisenhower. In the ad, Stevenson is labeling the GOP and Eisenhower as “flip floppers” on the issues, and that they can never provide a clear answer to voters. Although this ad is relatively short, the ad makes the GOP look like a circus act that is incapable of leading and cannot being taken serious. The ad makes it seem that the GOP is employing someone to be a “ringmaster” for their double-talking act, as if they are trying to present this idea and to sell this idea off as a good thing for voters.  There are many formal elements like the music, the words, the visuals and the characters themselves that communicate Stevenson’s idea of the GOP and his opponent being a circus act and being incapable of having any involvement as president.

The ad begins with the title stating clearly and centered “Platform Double-Talk” this is accompanied by circus music being played in the background, which can be heard throughout the whole ad. The Stevenson campaign picked this because the target audience were accustomed to the sounds and the acts of a circus. This is used to spark the idea that the GOP is a circus act, unlike the Democratic party, and is not a serious option for the presidency. The scene that immediately follows the title is the actual cartoon. In the foreground, there are two characters, the master of ceremonies and Mr. “Mac-G-O-P,” on stage under a sign that states “Republican Side Show,” and in the background you can see what looks like the rest of a circus. This is most of the visuals that are presented in this ad, aside from movements and focusing.  These visuals attack the GOP as being unfit and a side show rather than a prominent force in politics. This is the most direct form of attack the Stevenson campaign used; the rest came from the words and the characters in the ad. This ad attacks the Republican party and the idea of democracy because Stevenson is trying to prove to the audience that the presidency should not being taken over by a party that is a “joke.” Also the GOP will go against the public with their “double-talking” rhetoric and go against what the people have voted for. The initial visuals and sounds are not the only thing that add to this idea, but the characters and words continue this idea.

The main characters in this cartoon are the master of ceremonies and Mr. “Mac-G-O-P.” The master of ceremonies looks like a circus ringmaster, which makes Mr. “Mac-G-O-P” the attraction that people are coming to see. The character is depicted by dressing formal, having a big frame and his distinctive two heads. This character represents the two sides of the Republican party. One that is pro a specific issue and one that is against the same issue. In the ad, the public gets frustrated that this two-headed character is confusing the issue and the public. Every issue that this GOP candidate takes up always leads to a pro and con. This leads to the end where the narrator says “Don’t you be confused. Vote for Stevenson for president.” By depicting the GOP as a circus act confused on the issue, Stevenson’s campaign was trying to relay to the audience to stand with the Democratic party because they are not confused on any issue. In a historical sense, Stevenson was trying to continue the Democrats power in office because his two predecessors were FDR and Truman, which led the country out of the Great Depression and World War II.

Word document: analysis-post

Link to ad: http://www.livingroomcandidate.org/commercials/1952