Presidents in a digital age

 Public opinion has become an integral part in politics since the start of media consumption through radio and television. politicians found new ways to promote themselves and their policies, their personalities took center stage. Theodore Roosevelt, who was. one of the first presidents that had to deal with the new era of technology, was not necessarily known for his great speeches. but what brought him success was his energy and personality. he paved the way for using radio and newspapers to sway public opinion. Later on in the mid 20th century, franklin roosevelt often used the radio sto address the American people directly. Truman was the first president to broadcast the State of the Union on television and basically invited the people into the political arena, but in the comfort of their own home. (even though history will show that the media did not depict Truman in the kindest way) Eisenhower was however a hero in the broadcasting world. now let's skip a couple of decades and let's talk about how the presidents handle the rise of social media. 

Obama was the first president to tackle social media, and let's be honest here, he quickly got the hang of it. he was able to turn the everyday man into a political activist one tweet at a time. I would even go so far in saying that the reason why he was able to go from a fairly unknown senator to the democratic president mainly because his savviness in social media. next in line was Trump, and before he entered the political stadium, he already had a massive social media following. During his presidential campaigns and his presidency he didn't mind letting words flow freely, especially on twitter and he was often the center of political divide and controversy. 

Across history there might not have been that much change in their messaging, they still talk about important issues, foreign and domestic; they still hold their little press conferences. However, the tone has shifted, the political lexicon has changed over the years. in the past, the words that would be used in speeches etc, were more complex, more analytical. now i think people like simplicity, talk about complex issues, but explain it in a way that it's easy to understand. Maybe it's because you only have 140 characters to say what you want to say, who knows? in this digital age, it's easier for political figures to act more casual, because i think that's what the people want i think, to see themselves in their representatives.