Political rhetoric through multimedia

To be more specific, I will focus on the way multiple forms of the new media were used by the Dems and the Repubs during the 2008 election campaign. While Obama was considered more new media savvy and therefore, fit for a leadership role in the New Age, McCain's apparent handicap in this area raised questions about his eligibility. Obama used the Net as a campaign machine and not just an ATM. He unleashed a barrage of multimedia campaign material: a dedicated blog, an Ipod application, a web site, a Facebook profile, and several paid ads on television including the now famous multimillion-dollar, half-hour "infomercial" on three major television channels plus cable networks on October 29 at prime time. All this was in addition to traditional/old forms of campaigning. On the other hand, McCain set up a web site, and showed up on QVC with Ben Affleck, (said that was all he could afford) and Saturday Night Live. Obama showed up briefly on Saturday Night Live too, and Sarah Palin gave a short interview. Palin and Joe Biden also had their web sites. Clearly, McCain was depending more on old modes of rhetoric (town hall meetings, much in the Athenian way) to convey his ethos and appeal to the audience's pathos. Apart from this, both the presidential candidates used video biographies at their respective conventions and had large screens at the back of the stage with images which were meant to enhance the effect of their orations.

I will be talking about the visual, aural and written rhetoric conveyed by the candidates through multimedia and their effectiveness/success or otherwise in the light of ethos, pathos and logos.