Demonstrates how The United States' contemporary political system is driven by marketing, not ideology, with an emphasis on image over substance, personality over issues, and thirty second sound bites over meaningful dialogue. This book points out the pitfalls of relying on marketing as a campaign and governance tool, and offers alternatives.

Newton Minow's long engagement with the world of television began nearly fifty years ago when President Kennedy appointed him chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. As its head, Minow would famously dub TV a "vast wasteland," thus inaugurating a career dedicated to reforming television to better serve the public interest. Since then, he has been chairman of PBS and on the board of CBS and elsewhere, but his most lasting contribution remains his leadership on televised presidential debates. He was assistant counsel to Illinois governor Adlai Stevenson when Stevenson first proposed...