How the King of Late Night’s political influence helped turn public opinion against a president.
Calfano, B. R. & Han, L.
(20 January 2022)
How the King of Late Night’s political influence helped turn public opinion against a president.
USApp – American Politics and Policy Blog.
Can comedians and entertainers make a difference in politics all the way to the top? In new research, Brian Calfano and Lori Han examine the influence of the host of The Tonight Show, Johnny Carson’s mentions, between 1972 and 1974, of the Watergate scandal and President Richard Nixon. They find that Carson’s comments on Watergate likely influenced public opinion which then encouraged further news coverage of the scandal, leading to falling ratings for President Nixon.
| Item Type | Blog post |
|---|---|
| Copyright holders | © 2022 The Authors |
| Departments | LSE |
| Date Deposited | 15 Mar 2022 |
| URI | https://researchonline.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/114247 |