Tuesday, March 25, 2008 | 6:05 p.m.
Las Vegas image maven and former Reagan and Bush administration official Sig Rogich has been named chairman of an outside group of media strategists to Sen. John McCain, Chris Cilliza reports.
Rogich performed a similar, though more direct and day-to-day role, for Ronald Reagan in 1984, as well as George H.W. Bush in 1988 and 1992. Each campaign produced memorable and very effective advertising, including Reagan's "Morning in America" as well as the Willy Horton ads in 1992. (An outside group did the Horton ads, but they dovetailed nicely with Bush ads on prison furloughs that were a policy of the Democratic candidate, then Mass. Gov. Michael Dukakis.)
(Here's a piece about political advertising I wrote in 2004, which discusses political advertising, including "Morning" and the Horton ad, and why they work.)
Rogich was an early backer of McCain, which drew snickers last summer when the campaign was faltering. Now he looks like a genius.
His past successes, including the election of Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons in the face of huge obstacles at the end of the campaign, including too many scandals to go into here, can't be discounted.
It's worth keeping in mind, however, that presidential politics have changed since 1992. Network TV and the evening news are less and less influential. Viral marketing via the Internet, cable, radio and blog talk, and the kinds of grassroots politics done by Karl Rove in 2004 and by the Obama campaign this year, are far more
influential.
We'll see if Rogich can adapt.
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