The Presidents vs. the Press: The Endless Battle between the White House and the Media--from the Founding Fathers to Fake News

by Harold Holzer

On September 26, Kennedy and Nixon squared off for their initial debate at the studios of a CBS TV affiliate in Chicago. Few would remember what either nominee said that night. What stood out in high relief was how much Kennedy looked the part of a dynamic leader, and how much his opponent did not. Looking tanned and fit, JFK made Nixon appear haggard and weary by comparison. Genuinely weary he was: Nixon had recently spent time in the hospital recovering from a knee infection, shedding so much weight under a regimen of antibiotics that he had lost a shirt size—without bothering to buy new shirts. Worse, Nixon dressed for the event in a light-colored suit that blended into the pale backdrop, while Kennedy sported a dark outfit that contrasted vividly. Then, just before airtime, Nixon’s persistent five o’clock shadow began visibly emerging. To conceal it, aides applied cheap Shavestick makeup that made him appear practically “clown white,” in the words of a technician.