ABSTRACT
Following the example of many earlier candidates and campaigns, Barack Obama and his presidential campaign attempted to frame the 2008 election around issues favorable to the candidate. For Obama’s team, that goal required linking John McCain to the unpopular incumbent president, focusing on an economic recession, and emphasizing a desire to bring the war in Iraq to a close. Obama’s campaign deployed many typical methods for framing elections. Campaign spokespeople and high-profile surrogates logged countless hours speaking on radio and television shows and to crowds across the country. The campaign submitted its candidate to interviews with the press, sent out official statements when current events mandated a reaction, and crafted numerous advertisements for various media. These tactics attempted to frame the election campaign—both what issues would be discussed and how those issues would be debated—in a top-down, disciplined, and controlled manner.
