Presidential Success in Communicating with the Public through Televised Addresses

Abstract

Although the televised address to the nation is portrayed as a potentially powerful tool in influencing public opinion, scholars have little understanding of the president's ability to use these addresses to communicate his message to the American people. Thus, this study examines the president's effectiveness at using televised addresses to get his message across to the public, with whom he is most successful communicating his message, and why he succeeds in getting his message across to some but not to others. Using a unique set of national opinion surveys conducted by Richard Wirthlin, who was Ronald Reagan's pollster throughout Reagan's years as president, the author finds that the president has limited success in getting his message across to the public, the success he has varies among different groups, and that people's education and the amount of exposure they have to an address explain why the president is successful communicating his message to some but not to others.