The 1960 presidential debate between John Kennedy and Richard Nixon was the first to be ever televised. This debate proved the importance of mass media in politics and politicians have utilized it ever since. The televised debate had a vital impact on the outcome of the 1960 presidential election. It marked the beginning of an era where creating a public image and taking advantage of mass media became a vital component in winning elections (History, 2010). The personal appearance of both contestants played an important role in the outcome of the election. More people voted for voted President John Kennedy due to the appearance he portrayed during the debate.
Background to the Kennedy-Nixon Debates
The 1960 presidential election came at a time when the country clearly needed strong leadership. The country was engaged in wrangles in both the international and domestic front. In the international front, the United States was engaged in a Cold War with the then Soviet Union. In Cuba, Fidel Castro’s regime had resulted in fear of the spread of communism in the Western Hemisphere. Within the country, the politics of civil rights and desegregation were dividing the nation (History, 2010). The country was headed into a presidential election and John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon were the favorites for the top job. John was a young and charismatic senator while Nixon was an experienced Congress man, who was serving as the Vice President. The debate was aired live on television and radio on the morning of 26th September, 1960. John Kennedy arrived at the debate looking confident while his counterpart was pale and sickly. Kennedy spent the previous night with his team preparing for the debate. Nixon seemed underweight as he had been admitted in the hospital the earlier month. He was admitted due to an infection he developed after he knocked his knee on the car door during one of his campaign rallies. In the morning of the debate, he hit himself again on the same injury and exacerbated it.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
How non-verbal Communication Impacted the Outcome of the Debate
Kennedy was a picture of calm and health compared to Nixon who was pale and sickly. Kennedy’s skin was glowing in front of the camera while Nixon was sweaty as he refused to wear make-up during the debate. Kennedy was neatly dressed and wore perfect make up during the interview. He also portrayed a confident and convincing smile. While answering questions, he looked directly into the camera while Nixon did not embrace the camera. The TV audience was convinced more by Kennedy’s responses while the radio audience was convinced by Nixon’s responses. The radio audience supported Senator Nixon more as they could not see the nonverbal cues that he portrayed during the interview. Kennedy however went ahead to win the presidential election due to the image he portrayed during the interview.
Kennedy portrayed an image of confidence while Nixon was dodgy throughout the interview. The 1960 presidential win resulted in politicians paying importance to the image they portrayed during debates and campaigns. Most of the politicians hired publicity experts to help them create a perfect image to their audiences. They got to understand that winning debates is not only about what you say but also how you say it. Kennedy’s charisma played an important role in his election. According to some studies that have been conducted, personal charisma and personality are vital skills in communication and inspiring other people (Friedman, Prince, Riggio, & Dimatteo, 1980). Kennedy’s charisma enabled him to be entertaining, colorful and popular to the American people. Kennedy’s physical appearance played an important role as he wore make up that made his skin glow. The most successful politicians are charismatic people as they can easily move crowds. The physical appearance made him look more attractive and confident. According to (Friedman, Riggio & Casella, 1988), physical appearance has an impact on how likeable people are.
One of the main things that the debate proved is that persuasion is not all about verbal messages but also non-verbal communication. Senator Nixon was not convincing enough as he did not look straight into the camera while responding to questions. The senator was dodgy throughout the interview. President Kennedy on the other hand replied to questions directly and looked straight into the camera while giving his responses. By looking into the camera while responding to questions, he created a sense of intimacy between him and the intended audience. This technique was a key step towards persuading his voters which he successfully did. Other non-verbal signals that Kennedy employed to persuade voters were smiling, an affirmative nod and leaning forward a bit. He understood how to use these cue in order to convince his audience. He looked into the camera frequently but not for too long to create a sense of eye contact between him and his audience. He kept smiling but not for too long to create a friendly impression. He seemed to understand that smiling too much would make him appear insincere.
According to a study by Albert Mehrabian, a person’s audience decodes a speaker’s speech from visual clues, tone of voice and the actual words (Idealog, 2018). The study shows that if a speaker’s verbal and non-verbal messages are different, the audience will believe the latter. He emphasizes on the importance of personal appearance and states that when people try to decide if they like you, they first pay attention to your physical appearance. President Kennedy mastered this skill by coming to the interview glowing and decently dressed. Senator Nixon on the other hand was sweaty, pale and sickly. Kennedy’s glowing face made him look like the picture of health compared to his counterpart. President Kennedy understood that whether the voters liked or disliked you depended on one’s physical appearance. Apart from liking someone, an audience decides whether to trust and believe the speaker by focusing on the nonverbal cues.
It is essential for politicians and anyone seeking to persuade an audience to make the best possible non-verbal communication. Voters use their emotions to make decisions and later find facts to support that decision. When the verbal and non-verbal cues are in conflict, the audience follows the non-verbal cues. The importance of strong and relevant non-verbal communication in persuasion is portrayed in this essay. Any person seeking to persuade an audience should master the use of nonverbal persuasion.
References
Friedman, H. S., Riggio, R., Casella D. (1998). Nonverbal Skill, Personal Charisma and Initial Attraction. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 14:1, 203-211
Friedman, H. S., Prince, L., Riggio, R., & DiMatteo, M.R. (1980). Understanding and Assessing Nonverbal Expressiveness: The Affective Communication Test. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 39, 333-351
History (2010). The Kennedy-Nixon Debates. History. Retrieved from: https://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/kennedy-nixon-debates
Idealog (2018). The Importance of Nonverbal Persuasion. Idealog. Retrieved from: https://www.googleweblight.com/i?u=https://publicleadershipinstitute.org/2018/09/11/importance-non-verbal-persuasion/&hl=en-KE
