Political forum brings alternative perspectives to U.S. politics
Political discourse over the 2008 election filled the air as former Nevada Governor Richard Bryan and Republican political strategist Sig Rogich reflected on the 2008 presidential election.
Bryan and Rogich both hold venerable experiences in U.S. politics. Bryan viewed McCain as a “formidable” candidate with “a distinguished record and bipartisan appeal.” However, in spite of McCain’s experience, both Rogich and Bryan felt the circumstances proved greater than his performance.
“McCain was a victim of the times,” Bryan said.
Rogich acknowledges the media as one such factor that detracted from McCain’s campaign.
“The press was convinced that Obama should be president, and I believe that was poor journalistic practice,” Rogich said. “The media made John McCain an extension of George Bush. They loved him in the primaries, and nullified him in the general.”
Rogich, a former ambassador to Iceland, also traces his roots to UNR, where he once served as editor of the Nevada Sagebrush. Throughout his political career, Rogich served in many political campaigns, including those of Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush and John McCain.
Bryan also recognized the subjective nature of the media in the 2008 presidential election.
“Obama received the favor of press coverage,” Bryan said. “There is no doubt about that.”
Bryan started his political campaign as president of the Associated Students of the University of Nevada before serving as attorney general and governor for Nevada and becoming elected to the U.S. Senate.
Circumstances aside, both Bryan and Rogich believed the Republican campaign was poorly organized and executed, especially when handling the issue of the economy.
“I think there were times in the ebb and flow of the campaign where some issues transcended other issues, especially in regards to the economy in this case,” Bryan said. “When the economy went into a freefall, it was very difficult for his strategists to focus on his strong points.”
“The response from the campaign was very poor,” Rogich said. “The economy is always the major issue, even in good times. Instead of being concerned, I believed he was perceived as being an opportunist.”
Drawing a parallel with the Reagan debates, Bryans criticized Republican strategists in their portrayal of McCain in the media. Rogich affirmed Bryan’s perspective, disappointed with how McCain was presented to the public.
“John McCain was not the John McCain we knew,” Rogich said.
In light of criticism, Bryan and Rogich stand in admiration of the Democratic campaign strategy.
“Giving everyone their due, I believe the Democrats ran the best definitive political campaign in years, and the Republicans ran the worst,” Rogich said.
“The Obama campaign was a truly extraordinary campaign,” Bryan said.
One of the distinguishing characteristics of the 2008 presidential election was the use and evolution of technology in political advertising.
“This campaign will be notable for many things, but especially the marriage of technology of the 21st century to today’s politics,” Bryan said.
“In this election we saw Obama tap into a new resource as far as Youtube, texting, and video components, more so how he turned those resources into a chief fundraising tool,” Rogich said.
While the future significance of the election is unknown, both Bryan and Rogich believe the political landscape will be altered by the outcome.
“I do not know whether the 2008 election will be viewed as a seminal event in U.S. politics,” Bryan said. “I think there are a couple of things that are clear. The politics of the future will be different than the politics of the past. The technology of the 21st century caught up to politics, and Barack Obama recognized and utilized that. We will see a struggle of the Republican party in reconciling policy and demographic shifts.”
The discussion, sponsored by the Jim Joyce Endowment for Political Communication, was hosted on Feb. 10 in the Joe Crowley Student Union.
Robin Joyce, moderator of the forum, described the panel as “designed to equip the students of journalism with tools of communication and the political process.”
Written By
Andrew Church
Bryan and Rogich both hold venerable experiences in U.S. politics. Bryan viewed McCain as a “formidable” candidate with “a distinguished record and bipartisan appeal.” However, in spite of McCain’s experience, both Rogich and Bryan felt the circumstances proved greater than his performance.
“McCain was a victim of the times,” Bryan said.
Rogich acknowledges the media as one such factor that detracted from McCain’s campaign.
“The press was convinced that Obama should be president, and I believe that was poor journalistic practice,” Rogich said. “The media made John McCain an extension of George Bush. They loved him in the primaries, and nullified him in the general.”
Rogich, a former ambassador to Iceland, also traces his roots to UNR, where he once served as editor of the Nevada Sagebrush. Throughout his political career, Rogich served in many political campaigns, including those of Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush and John McCain.
Bryan also recognized the subjective nature of the media in the 2008 presidential election.
“Obama received the favor of press coverage,” Bryan said. “There is no doubt about that.”
Bryan started his political campaign as president of the Associated Students of the University of Nevada before serving as attorney general and governor for Nevada and becoming elected to the U.S. Senate.
Circumstances aside, both Bryan and Rogich believed the Republican campaign was poorly organized and executed, especially when handling the issue of the economy.
“I think there were times in the ebb and flow of the campaign where some issues transcended other issues, especially in regards to the economy in this case,” Bryan said. “When the economy went into a freefall, it was very difficult for his strategists to focus on his strong points.”
“The response from the campaign was very poor,” Rogich said. “The economy is always the major issue, even in good times. Instead of being concerned, I believed he was perceived as being an opportunist.”
Drawing a parallel with the Reagan debates, Bryans criticized Republican strategists in their portrayal of McCain in the media. Rogich affirmed Bryan’s perspective, disappointed with how McCain was presented to the public.
“John McCain was not the John McCain we knew,” Rogich said.
In light of criticism, Bryan and Rogich stand in admiration of the Democratic campaign strategy.
“Giving everyone their due, I believe the Democrats ran the best definitive political campaign in years, and the Republicans ran the worst,” Rogich said.
“The Obama campaign was a truly extraordinary campaign,” Bryan said.
One of the distinguishing characteristics of the 2008 presidential election was the use and evolution of technology in political advertising.
“This campaign will be notable for many things, but especially the marriage of technology of the 21st century to today’s politics,” Bryan said.
“In this election we saw Obama tap into a new resource as far as Youtube, texting, and video components, more so how he turned those resources into a chief fundraising tool,” Rogich said.
While the future significance of the election is unknown, both Bryan and Rogich believe the political landscape will be altered by the outcome.
“I do not know whether the 2008 election will be viewed as a seminal event in U.S. politics,” Bryan said. “I think there are a couple of things that are clear. The politics of the future will be different than the politics of the past. The technology of the 21st century caught up to politics, and Barack Obama recognized and utilized that. We will see a struggle of the Republican party in reconciling policy and demographic shifts.”
The discussion, sponsored by the Jim Joyce Endowment for Political Communication, was hosted on Feb. 10 in the Joe Crowley Student Union.
Robin Joyce, moderator of the forum, described the panel as “designed to equip the students of journalism with tools of communication and the political process.”
Written By
Andrew Church
Comment
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Comment by Deidre on February 24, 2009 at 12:34pm - A useful account of the story. You do a terrific job of capturing the speakers' key points.
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