The Historical Presidency: I like Ike: The origins of broadcast presidential campaign advertising

Abstract

The first televised presidential campaign commercials ran in the 1952 electoral contest between Dwight Eisenhower and Adlai Stevenson, specifically as part of the effort to draft and then elect General Eisenhower. These first spot ads were developed not by political parties or the candidates but by an independent citizens group, Citizens for Eisenhower. The group developed two distinct styles of television advertising. The best known of these stemmed from the hard‐sell Madison Avenue tradition of public relations and its advertising innovator, Rosser Reeves, who produced the “Eisenhower Answers America” campaign. Less well known is an ad created by volunteer workers from the Disney Corporation, who produced an animated, musical rendition promising that “We'll Take Ike to Washington.” Unlike Reeves's more substantive ads that focused on issues, the Disney ads emphasized the image and character of the candidate. Using archival sources, this article shows that the televised marketing of the presidency stemmed not only from the public relations experts and Madison Avenue advertisers like Reeves but also from those connected to the entertainment industry who sought to manipulate the public through character appeals.