I do believe you heard it here first. At least, I couldn't find anyone else talking about this idea at the time. Both Nixon and Humphrey did it in 1968, and I had to go to Google Books to find a reference to it in an obscure 20 year-old book on presidential politics and the media: the election eve telethon.The New York In-The-Tank-For-Obama Times reports:
Obama, Purse Swelling, Plans Half-Hour TV Ad
Senator Barack Obama has become the first presidential candidate in 16 years to buy a half-hour of prime time network television for a campaign infomercial.
Officials at the Obama campaign and at several television networks said Thursday that Mr. Obama had completed deals to show a half-hour program about his candidacy on CBS and NBC on Wednesday, Oct. 29, less than a week before Election Day. The campaign is also talking to ABC and Fox about similar deals, though the potential of a World Series Game 6 may make that impossible on Fox.
And last month I wrote:
In the last days of the 1968 Presidentiual Election, both candidates - Richard Nixon and Hubert Humphrey - ran two-hour "paid programming" telethons, broadcast on major networks (which, in the days before Cable news channels, were the only games in town.) These are described in the book White House to Your House by Edwin Diamond and Robert A. Silverman.
So how about a blast from the past - an Obama Election Eve Telethon?
[...]
I think this might be a good idea to dust off for November. How about it, Obama campaign? I know you can afford it.
I'm glad that the Obama campaign is finally following my advice!
Admittedly, we're talking about an Obama infomercial, not a "telethon" per se, but these are different times. There won't be a bank of phones ringing, but you can be sure there will be website links and text message numbers being displayed. Though I still think the telethon format would be a great PR move.
Extra credit: Who was the last presidential candidate to use the "infomercial"?
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