Master’s Thesis: The Mediated Gore

The Mediated Gore

Media Representations of Al Gore in the Public Sphere

by Stuart Noble

Center for American Studies, University of Southern Denmark

Abstract:

This thesis explores the many manifestations of Al Gore through competing and often contradictory narrative constructions in the public media landscape. Narratives about public figures may reflect or reinforce, but often contradict the individual’s own self-representation, agenda, and political ideology. Even so, media representations frequently become popularly accepted narratives within the national discourse, mediated social constructions which mythologize or caricaturize public figures. These competing images represent competing ideologies and contested political property in the public sphere. My main concern is how Al Gore’s image has changed during the course of his public career. The discussion focuses on five specific representations as outlined in the five chapter headings. The main questions include: How has Al Gore been constructed and represented in the popular media over time? In which way do diverse groups and individuals contest and reposition the image of Gore, and how has he either resisted or engaged in creating various public images himself? To what degree do competing constructions of Gore reflect contested zones in American political culture? Is it possible to reconcile the many characterizations of Gore to his numerous political writings and policy goals, both past and present? The materials I will draw from derive primarily from print and photo journalism, and also include broadcast and other electronic media. I argue that the public images of Al Gore portrayed in media and popular culture represent contested property within political popular culture ranging between attitudes of civic piety to public cynicism.

Theory and Methodology:

The main focus of this thesis is the role of media in creating political narratives about Al Gore in the public sphere. The primary sources are two-fold. First, Al Gore’s own writings, articles and speeches are employed from various sources such as his numerous books, government documents, and newspaper and magazine articles. Secondly, editorials and articles are taken from such major “consensus liberal” opinion leaders as; The New York Times, Washington Post, Time and Newsweek. Also included are many smaller but also important public opinion influencers like; The New Republic, The Nation, National Review, and Vanity Fair. Furthermore, some new media sources such as The American Prospect, Salon.com, various political blogs and other websites add to the project. Biographies on Al Gore, such as Bill Turque’s Inventing Al Gore, and other biographical essays help provide some of the historical context.

The discussion is situated within a social constructivist framework that considers political culture as a dynamic, continually contested public terrain. This position is influenced by the critical theory of Antonio Gramsci, who understood popular mass media, “as a zone of contestation, a site where the struggle for hegemony unfolds.” Stuart Hall’s work on “Reception Theory” provides a more nuanced framework for the discussion and analysis of specific texts. The discussion also touches upon political history, sociology, political theory, semiotics, and visual literacy. Two works which help frame this project are Hariman and Louis’s, No Caption Needed: Iconic Photographs, Public Culture, and Liberal Democracy and Sarah Churchwell’s The Many Lives of Marilyn Monroe. David Strauss’s Between the Eyes: Essays on Photography and Politics is an example of the works used for visual semiotic analysis. The purpose of this to provide an interdisciplinary model that allows the reader to look at the issue from several different viewpoints.

Thesis Outline:

1. The Political Gore: The Next President of the United States…again?

I begin with Gore’s entry into public office over thirty years ago and trace a broad outline of his portrayal as a politician, particularly during election campaigns which generate the most public and media attention. As Gore has served most of his life in public office, this chapter should also be seen as an introduction to the following chapters which are more thematic.

2. The Green Gore: Environmental Savior or Technocratic Quack?

Gore first became interested in environmental issues as an undergraduate at Harvard during the late 1960’s. From his early congressional activism to his Nobel peace prize in 2007, environmental policy remains Gore’s signature issue and is what he is most recognized for by the public. Just as environmental politics are a hotly contested arena, so too is Gore’s public environmental image contested and repositioned at various times by often competing agendas.

3. The Academic Gore: Scholar or Smarty Pants?

Here I explore the construction of Gore as the “policy wonk” or “technocratic bureaucrat.” Gore has written numerous books and policy papers about; nuclear arms control, environmental regulation, media and communication infrastructure two name a few. Moreover, Gore’s writings draw from such diverse fields as neuropsychology, critical political theory, and literary theory and he’s never been shy about quoting academic texts in his speeches and papers. How then has the media reflected Gore’s academic writing through his image?

4. The Disintermediated Gore: New Media or New Politics?

During the first two years following the Supreme Court decision which insured Gore would not become the 43^rd President, Gore remained largely out of the national spotlight. But during the Bush administration’s run-up to the U.S war against Iraq he reemerged as one of the few outspoken critiques against the war and the administration. He further began a public campaign to re-assert his drive for pushing environmental issues in the public, giving testimonials to congress, writing two books, launching a new television station and creating his academy award winning, “An Inconvenient Truth.” However, Gore’s public image had once again seemingly changed as journalists wrote about yet another version of Al Gore, the “new New Gore.”

5. The Global Gore: Cosmopolitan Liberalism or Neo-liberal Exceptionalism?

The final chapter looks at both American and international media portrayals of Gore as a global figure, culminating with his awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize.