The Obama Victory How Media, Money, and Message Shaped the 2008 Election

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.

"The Obama Victory: How Media, Money and Message Shaped the 2008 Election is smart, groundbreaking and full of surprises. Despite all that's been written about the 2008 campaign, Kathleen Hall Jamieson, Bruce Hardy and Kate Kenski have produced fresh, conclusive evidence of how rhetoric, themes, and unprecedented campaign spending--plus the Palin factor--explain the historic outcome. Sharply written and brilliantly documented, this is the book for anyone interested in politics."-Andrea Mitchell, NBC News

"This book provides critical documentation about the historic 2008 campaign. Summing Up: Highly recommended."-Choice

"Fifty years from now scholars studying how Barack Obama overcame the odds of winning the 2008 election may turn to this impeccably researched book with its detailed regressions of the impact of various factors on voter decisions. They will find a wealth of data, charts, and graphs; meticulous explanations of methodology; and carefully drawn conclusions."-Communication Research Trends

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