by Joseph P. Tartaro | Executive Editor
Executive Editor Joseph Tartaro
Love him or hate him, Donald Trump has been teaching a lesson in marketing during his current bid for the White House in the November elections. He is the modern day P.T. Barnum.
Trump is not just holding daily—and even hourly— instruction for professional politicians and election experts, he has been setting the media back on its collective ear, including not just the big newspapers and networks, but even the Internet crowd and, of course, the cable news gang. CNN, FOX, CMBC, MSNBC and their wannabees have garnered record viewer audiences with their countless debates and “town meetings.”
Of course, Trump may not be the only reason for such record cable news audiences. The whole spectacle of so many GOP candidates on the stage sniping at one another at one time, or the surprising sparring on the Democrat side which began with five contenders, is only part of the answer. But the Nielson-rating crowd has been tallying unprecedented audiences of cable news network viewers almost from the beginning of the campaigns.
The huge number of viewers watching suggests that this election year American voters may actually be paying attention to the candidates and what is being said. There are apparently many issues that inflame the passions of the electorate, but whatever the issues involved—and they may well change before Nov. 8—it will be interesting to see what the voter turnout really is.
As an example, many gun rights activists already knew how important this election is to the balance of the Supreme Court, but the death of Justice Antonin Scalia on Feb. 13 made this an issue of importance for everybody. Between now and November, there may be many other events that pull issues from the back burner to the front of the stove.
What is already evident is that the American people, regardless of factionalism and background, are paying attention. Some might say “At last.”
One thing we can all agree on is that there now exists a growing number of independent voters made up mostly of people who were either once registered Democrats or Republicans, or who never voted before. The second thing is that people are fed up with politics as usual, holding politicians—and the general media—in very low regard. There is an undercurrent of rage among the electorate that may decide to impose change their own way, not just the “change” that both major parties always promise but seldom deliver.
Some have termed the public mood—at least for that segment of the American populace that is really paying attention—as extremely angry to the point of rage.
Into this political environment stepped a surprising candidate—Trump. Perhaps few were actually surprised. He had flirted with the last New York gubernatorial election, but stepped away.
But the presidency is another matter. Trump was among the cattle call of GOP hopefuls who showed up to speak at the National Rifle Association’s annual meetings in Nashville last year. He even did a walk-through of the exhibit hall, although not showing particular attention to the exhibits that I observed, nor engaging in conversations with those NRA members in attendance.
Be that as it may, Trump has dominated the campaign so far. He has been outlandish enough in his campaign to dominate the headlines daily, and to push his opposition in the Republican Party, and even the establishment media’s darling Hilary Clinton, off the front page. He has spent a lot less campaign money than Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Clinton, Bernie Sanders and even Chris Christie and John Kasich, but he is winning most of the state primaries and caucuses so far. Maybe he can afford it, but he hasn’t had to spend it yet.
It’s no wonder then that Advertising Age, a leading voice in the consumer marketing field, made him the cover story in its March 7 issue. In the article, they quote several advertising and marketing luminaries who, though not Trump fans, admire the way that he has marketed his candidacy to the American public. Some go so far as to suggest that his approach to the campaign provides a textbook lesson for big corporations trying to sell their products to the public. They note that even when he stumbled over such hot button gaffes as his failure to denounce a Ku Klux Klan leader, he still ends up on his feet without really apologizing or eating humble pie.
Many in the GOP and the K-Street lobbying crowd, and even some independents may be alarmed by Donald Trump, are appalled at the prospect of a Trump presidency, but he still keeps pushing ahead. It may be too early to make predictions, or pick a candidate to vote for, but right now Trump—like a Barnum and Bailey elephant—towers over the candidates of both parties.
