Republic of Spin
An Inside History of the American Presidency
8 March 2016
Description
Republic of Spin illuminates the power of image crafting and its limits—its capacity not only to mislead but also to lead.
In Republic of Spin, David Greenberg recounts the rise of the White House spin machine from Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama. His sweeping narrative takes us behind the scenes to see how the techniques of image making and message craft work. We meet Franklin Roosevelt huddling with his private pollsters, Ronald Reagan’s aides crafting his nightly news sound bites, George W. Bush staging his extravagant photo-opportunities, and the backstage visionaries who pioneered new ways of gauging public opinion and mastering the media.
Greenberg also examines the profound debates Americans have waged over the effect of spin on politics, looking at whether spin helps leaders manipulate the citizenry or whether it allows them to engage more fully in the democratic project.
Reviews
"From Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama, David Greenberg has written a brilliant, fast-moving narrative history of the leaders who have defined the modern American presidency." — Bob Woodward, The Washington Post
Also By: David Greenberg 
Nixon's Shadow: The History of an Image
E Book, 2017
How an image-obsessed president transformed the way we think about politics and politicians.
Nixon's Shadow: The History of an Image
Paperback, 2004
How an image-obsessed president transformed the way we think about politics and politicians.
