Comparing Presidential Campaign Advertising 1964-1980

Use this lesson to have students analyze strategies behind campaign advertising and how current events shape the way campaign advertising is designed.

Objectives:

• Students will be able to identify strategies behind campaign advertising.
• Students will identify how current events shape the nature of campaign advertising.

• Handout A: Warm-Up—Analysis Sheet
• Handout B: Feeding Cold War Fears in the 1964 Campaign
  • Document 1: “Daisy” TV advertisement for Lyndon B. Johnson (1964)
  • Document 2: Barry Goldwater – Republican nomination acceptance speech, July 17, 1964
  • Document 3: “Your children will be communists” TV advertisement for Barry Goldwater, 1964
• Handout C: The Reagan Revolution
  • Document 1: “Streetgov” TV advertisement for Jimmy Carter, 1980
  • Document 2: Ronald Reagan Acceptance Speech, 1980
  • Document 3: “Peace Through Strength” ad for Ronald Reagan, 1980

Students will need to have devices with internet connections to complete this lesson. Desktop, laptops, Chromebooks, or tablets would all be fine for accessing the resources used in this lesson.