Every four years as part of the presidential election process, political parties showcase their candidate, explain their platform and kick off their fall campaign at their national political conventions.  Today conventions merely formalize the nominees for president and vice president.  Even so they play a significant role in solidifying party support and providing national exposure for the nominees. In this lesson you will look at a brief history of  conventions and also see clips about the convention planning process.  You will hear from party leaders about the roles that  conventions now play and learn about how the "show" is put together.

Since the first nationally televised conventions in 1952, party leaders have worked hard to script and shape their messages to grab voters' attention.  There are usually one or two moments, though, some planned and some not, which create a key image in America’s collective memory.  These moments can be emotional, uplifting, raucous, violent, or even humorous.  Look at historic moments from conventions and answer the  questions listed with the clips.

	Like the convention goers pictured at the right, C-SPAN viewers will be able to view an array of speeches at this year’s political conventions. The nominees' acceptance speeches are often a highlight, but there are many others.  Speeches from the rising stars in the party, legacies of the past, family members and leaders in swing states are just some of other speakers you might see at the podium.  In this lesson use the clips from famous convention speeches to learn more about what makes good public speaking.