In the Pioneer Press article President Obama tries to rally the troops, boost Mark Dayton at the University of Minnesota appearance president Obama is depicted through a slide show of pictures taken during the rally as well as a recap of the most important quotes and topics president Obama commented on. Not being able to go to the rally myself, the speech seemed to mainly consist of Obama campaigning for Mark Dayton and the importance of voting him governor in the upcoming elections. Without looking at the pictures the press had taken, Obama merely seems to be speaking good words for Dayton. He seems less our president but more of a politician campaigning for the Democrat party. However, then I took a look through the slide show of pictures and there are many of Obama reaching out to the public. Two that stand out to me are where Obama is walking through the press smiling and welcoming and the one of Obama reaching out to the small children behind the gate. In these images Obama is depicted as our president rather than a representative of the Democrat party. Combing the article with the photos provides the basis of the title for the article. He is reaching out to the public and addressing the current issues such as the troops across seas as well as campaigning for the Democrat party because he is in fact Democrat.
It is important that Obama is represented in both of these ideas because he is the president and addressing current issues is his duty to society as well as attempting to spread his beliefs through preaching Democratic ideals. Since photos are debatably the most persuasive tool media possesses, the Pioneer Press most effectively depicts Obama as a personable and easy going leader of our country through the photos taken. The images I mentioned earlier as well as the other images in the slide show capture the personality the article briefly describes about our president (e.g. “[Obama] dressed in a pale blue shirt open at the collar with his sleeves rolled up”). However, many of these images or the ideas entrapped in these photos can also be seen in many articles and ads from past presidents. All presidents strive to be represented in the same demeanor (friendly, easy going, etc.). By just looking at the images, the public is only provided the basics: Obama is the president, the location is the University of Minnesota, Obama is giving a speech, Mark Dayton is affiliated with the speech. The meaning of the speech itself is lost in the pictures’ representations. Only once the article is read can one understand the basis of the rally. So, although the images are the most interesting representation, it is still important to look at the images as well as the text to understand the poetics [images and text] that stem from the politics [images].
Pioneer Press article found by URL:
http://www.twincities.com/politics/ci_16417864?nclick_check=1
Thought I'd write back a comment because that is really interesting how the articles that we analyzed were so different. [I wrote about MN Daily article that barely mentions Mark Dayton]. I would say that this is due to the difference in audience. The MN Daily is read primarily by 18-24s attending the university while I imagine a middle aged man as the target market for the Pioneer Press. A characteristic in my stereotype of a middle aged man is caring about politics and current events. I think younger people, the majority of MN Daily readers, are represented as a group who does not hold interest/value in learning about 'real political issues' because the article targeted for them barely skimmed the surface of the political issues.
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