depth of meaning which the event communicated to them. 
Many more were surprised by the coolness and calm of the 
mass reaction. The same event, handled by press or radio (in 
the absence of television), would have provided a totally 
different experience. The national “lid” would have “blown off.” 
Excitement would have been enormously greater and depth 
participation in a common awareness very much less.

     As explained earlier, Kennedy was an excellent TV image. 
He had used the medium with the same effectiveness that 
Roosevelt had learned to achieve by radio. With TV, Kennedy 
found it natural to involve the nation in the office of the 
Presidency, both as an operation and as an image. TV reaches 
out for the corporate attributes of office. Potentially, it can 
transform the Presidency into a monarchic dynasty. A merely 
elective Presidency scarcely affords the depth of dedication and