Watch the campaign video, “A New Beginning,” which aired at the Republican National Convention in 1984. Reagan’s Chief of Staff Michael Deaver stated, “Television changes everything so much. . . . The image becomes all important. . . . Visuals become necessary to get something across.”[1] What kind of imagery does “A New Beginning” use to promote Reagan’s re-election? How does that imagery draw on Cold War symbols and themes?
- 1. Joanne Morreale,
A New Beginning: A Textual Frame Analysis of the Political Campaign Film (Albany: State University of New York, 1991), 5.
In “A New Beginning” Ronald Reagan uses imagery that appeals to the idealized American public. He uses imagery that emphasizes the nuclear family, depicting people talking about how his lowered taxes and interest rates helped with social security. He ties in the image of the family to the sense of duty toward America, equating the nuclear family with upholding American ideals. By emphasizing the effect that the wars of the 20th century had had on families. he unites the value of family with the idea of freedom held so dearly at the time. Reagan’s video portrays the US as a triumphant nation. The images shown during his trips to Asia reinforce the idea of the US as a benevolent, freedom-spreading nation. While China was still communist at the time, the feel-good images that Reagan uses show a country desiring to liberate people rather than enforce ideals upon them (a quality the US commonly associated with the USSR in the cold war era). Reagan also uses the scene of him with the Chaplain to allude to the United States’ Christian values. During his presidency, Reagan criticized the Soviet Union for its secularism, equating it with a lack of morality.
The Campaign Video, “A New Beginning,” is full of classic American imagery. It is clear to the viewer that Reagan was trying to portray himself in the most American way possible. The video starts with images of farms, farm houses, ranchers, and a paper boy. These images are shown as stereotypical images of the United States. During the Cold War the United States was constantly comparing itself to Soviet Russia. The images of prosperous farm lands and hardworking happy blue collard men paints a picture that all is great within the United States. The film constantly has images of Niagara Falls, Arlington National Cemetery, the Statue of Liberty, and many images of troops. These images are there to show to the nation the strength and prosperity of the United States compared to Soviet Russia after the all the wars. Reagan shows himself connected to the people as he also likes ranching and cutting down trees to show the strong connection he has with the nation. Then in end of the film the viewer sees a spaceship taking off to show the success in the space race against the Soviet Union.