Procedures

• WARM-UP:

  Begin class by posing the following question to the students. Discuss their ideas with the class.

  • If you were running for president, how would you announce your candidacy?

• INTRODUCTION:

  Provide background information about presidential campaign announcements by having the class view the video listed below. Students should answer the associated questions and be prepared to discuss them as a class.

• VIDEO CLIP: Official Presidential Campaign Announcements (3:27)

  • Identify and describe two factors that impact the timing of candidates officially announcing their presidential campaign.
  • What is meant by "testing the waters" period? What actions do candidates take during this period?
  • After watching the clip, describe two ways that officially declaring as a candidate is significant.

• EXPLORATION:

  Assign each of the campaign announcement videos to individual students or small groups. Have the students view the video clip and complete their section of the Presidential Campaign Announcement Handout. Using a jigsaw format, have the students become experts on each and present that information to their classmates so they con complete the chart. This can also be adapted so individual students complete the entire chart or a selected number of campaign announcements.

• HANDOUT: Presidential Campaign Announcements (Google Doc)

  The chart on the handout addresses the following questions for each clip:

  • Summarize the candidate's message in this clip.
  • Describe the setting of the announcement. How might this setting reflect the candidate's message, background or principles?
  • What issues/topics does the candidate discuss?
  • Research which party held the presidency when the candidate announced their candidacy. How do you think this impacted their message?
  • Based on the clip, list a strength and a weakness of the candidate.

• PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN ANNOUNCEMENTS:

  • VIDEO CLIP: 2016 Election- Donald Trump Presidential Announcement (3:13)

  • VIDEO CLIP: 2016 Election- Hillary Clinton Presidential Campaign Announcement (2:15)

  • VIDEO CLIP: 2016 Election- Bernie Sanders Presidential Campaign Announcement (3:18)

  • VIDEO CLIP: 2012 Election- Mitt Romney Presidential Campaign Announcement (3:03)

  • VIDEO CLIP: 2008 Election- John McCain Presidential Campaign Announcement (3:27)

  • VIDEO CLIP: 2008 Election- Barack Obama Presidential Campaign Announcement (2:43)

  • VIDEO CLIP: 2004 Election- John Kerry (D) Presidential Campaign Announcement (2:43)

  • VIDEO CLIP: 2000 Election- George W. Bush (R) Presidential Campaign Announcement (3:57)

  • VIDEO CLIP: 2000 Election- Al Gore (D) Presidential Campaign Announcement (2:10)

• APPLICATION:

  After students have completed the chart, have the students write an extended written response to the following prompt. Explain how presidential campaign announcements do the following for their campaign. Use evidence from the videos and the chart to explain your answer.

  • Establish a message
  • Set the tone
  • Prioritize issues

• SUMMARY: Review and discuss the students' answers with the class. Address any misconceptions. Engage in a class discussion about what is the best way to announce a candidacy.

• EXTENSION ACTIVITIES:

  Campaign Announcement Comparisons-

  Choose one of the following pairs of presidential campaign announcements. Compare these announcements in terms of message, tone, background and who they are running against. In a paragraph, explain the reasons for the similarities and differences.

  • Pair 1: 1992 Election- Gov. Bill Clinton(D) and 2016 Election- [Donald Trump (R)]( https://www.c-span.org/classroom/document/?8830)
  • Pair 2: 1988 Election- Vice President George H.W. Bush (R) and 2000 Election- Vice President- Al Gore (D)
  • Pair 3: 1996 Election- Sen. Bob Dole (R) and 2012 Election- Gov. Mitt Romney (R)

  Develop a Presidential Campaign Announcement-

  Choose a potential candidate for an upcoming presidential race. Research his/her background and viewpoints of this candidates. Develop a plan for this candidate to officially announce his/her candidacy. Address the following questions:

  • What form will this announcement take (speech, rally, video, etc…)? Describe the setting.
  • What will be said during this announcement? Develop a script or a speech.
  • Who else might be included in this announcement (other elected officials, celebrities, family members, etc…)?

• Additional Prompts:

  • In two short paragraphs, describe two advantages and two disadvantages of announcing a candidacy through an online video.
  • How do candidates use specific locations to represent their message, background or principles. Use three different examples from the video to support your argument.
  • Explain how the tone and messaging in campaign announcements are different for candidates running against an incumbent president. Cite two examples from the videos.
  • Summarize the similarities in tone and messaging for candidates