When New York City hosted the Democratic National Convention in 1992, the three major television networks threatened not to anchor their coverage from the convention hall. It was a negotiating tactic used privately on those of us organizing the event and was designed to reduce the cost of constructing anchor booths in Madison Square Garden. But it shows how far media coverage of national political conventions has come.
Today, it's impossible to imagine Brian Williams, Charlie Gibson, and Katie Couric threatening not to attend the upcoming Democratic or Republican national conventions. In fact, all three will be leading their networks' extensive coverage.
National political conventions have for decades been considered political dinosaurs, since they no longer determine the parties' tickets. But, in a stunning display of resilience, they have evolved, along with growing new media, into political theater that can still change the course of the nation.
Recent growth in media coverage of the conventions is both evidence of their vitality and a source of their impact. In 1992, CNN was the only 24-hour news network, and the Internet was not yet a political force. This year, in addition to the broadcast television news coverage, the conventions will be intensively covered by all three 24-hour news networks, other cable channels, Internet news sites, and countless blogs, as well as print and radio outlets.
MSNBC alone is planning 20 hours of live convention programming on each of the days when the conventions are in session. And ABC News Now, a digital cable channel, plans to provide gavel-to-gavel coverage of both events. Local, national, international, and global news coverage will spiral out exponentially from there.
The current vitality of the conventions stems from their successful transformation from deliberative bodies into television studios, with large in-house audiences. And, as such, they have developed three key contemporary roles. First, they provide a pivotal opportunity for the presidential candidates to re-introduce themselves to the public. Bill Clinton did so to greatest effect in 1992 by airing at the convention the biographical film "A Man from Hope". The film came in the wake of an alleged affair with Gennifer Flowers and made it possible for Clinton to re-define himself and go on to win the White House. Despite this year's protracted primary season, both candidates will seek to define themselves further at the conventions -- this time focusing on key swing voters and independents.
Second, the conventions provide a major national platform for up-and-coming political leaders. Barack Obama would not be this year's presumptive Democratic nominee if he had not delivered the keynote address at the 2004 convention in Boston. At the time, he was still a State senator, and that speech propelled him on his meteoric rise.
Third, the conventions each offer the one occasion in the election season when party members and the public can see and judge the parties' leadership at all levels -- national, state, and local. And the heightened attention from 24-hour news media and the Internet elevates both the conventions' stature and their impact.
What should the public watch for at these conventions? First, the acceptance speeches of the presidential nominees will be fascinating. Barack Obama will give his outdoors -- before 75,000 people in Denver's Mile High Stadium -- for the first time since John F. Kennedy. John McCain's speech, however, may be the most important of all, as he seeks to clearly differentiate himself from the George W. Bush Administration while strengthening his support within the Republican base.
Second, be on the look-out for future rising stars. New leaders in both parties could emerge, as Obama did. The Republicans, in particular, will be looking to elevate a new generation for the next election cycle.
Finally, don't forget the host cities. They have raised nearly $100 million in total to convey their own stories to the nation and the world. Denver and Minneapolis/St. Paul will all benefit in the short term by having convention-goers in town and from the related media coverage. But will they achieve the more elusive long-lasting benefits of hosting a convention?
Some cities have done that: Atlanta would never have hosted the 1996 Summer Olympics if it hadn't first hosted the 1988 Democratic National Convention. New York City created three landmark events for the 1992 Democratic Convention that still promote New York annually: Restaurant Week; "Broadway on Broadway", the theaters' free public concert in Times Square; and a forerunner of Fashion Week. And New York's hosting of the 2004 Republican Convention importantly showed that the city had bounced back from 9/11.
Denver and Minneapolis/St. Paul will be doing their best to ensure that some of the media glare lasts for them. Denver is hosting jazz and blues and hip hop festivals featuring internationally renowned musicians, plus a concert by Willie Nelson. The Twin Cities will be promoting their own local artists to underscore the strength of their impressive arts communities.
The conventions are more than a spectacle, and they deserve attention. They have developed a newly defined value, which puts them a long way from extinction.
Henry L. Miller, Chief Operating Officer of Goodman Media International, was CEO of New York City's hosting of the 1992 Democratic National Convention.