Joshua King and "Polioptics: Packaged Political Persuasion"

“Chicken or Egg?”

This was the question Joshua King asked of his audience Tuesday night in the Marvin Center Amphitheater as he concluded his presentation entitled “Polioptics: Packaged Political Persuasion.” The event, sponsored by the School of Media and Public Affairs, the Graduate School of Political Management, and the GW College Democrats, focused on King’s experience as a former aide to the Clinton administration. He designed the way in which the president was viewed by the public in any and all realms, from public to private. His presentation touched on how recent presidents, i.e. from Reagan to Obama, and their imagery affect culture and vice versa.

Thus the question: Chicken or Egg? Is it an American obsession with marketing that has changed our culture, or has culture changed how we market aspects of society as important as our government officials? King’s career provided him with an insider perspective of this phenomenon, orchestrating how Clinton was presented to the world. His presentation was filled with literal architectural sketches of presidential events, rallies, meetings with foreign dignitaries, and everything in between. These events were all put together with the knowledge that image can make or break a story - and history.

King showed images and recounted tales of gaffes and epic moments in the past 29 years, from Reagan's walk with Nancy through a cemetery in Normandy to Bush’s “Mission Accomplished” sign declaring the end of combat in Iraq. He brought laughter to the room with anecdotes and images of the past and present, including a screen capture of Obama’s purported "evil eye" from the Drudge Report.

Imagery of the president today means something entirely different from King’s tenure, a point he himself admitted. Mostly, he said, technology has changed our ability to get information and images of the President. But our desire for information on any and all aspects of the President’s life has kept the business of political persuasion afloat.

Now, we can view hundreds of photos of the president throughout his day almost immediately after they’re taken via the Internet. Political imagery today is less packaged than King’s time. Today, the best images are lucky images captured with the simple fortune of being in the right place in the right time. It is these images that ultimately define presidential history.