Nationally-televised US presidential elections since 1960

Noted trends since the 1960 US presidential election have been introduced that improve the style and expertise of the nationally-televised US elections.

The 1960 US presidential election is the first to include the newly-admitted states of both Alaska and Hawaii as participants, doubling as the last without Washington D.C.

Likewise, the 1960 US presidential election is also the first in which an incumbent US President was declined a third term under the 22nd Amendment.

Plus, the 1960 US presidential election was the first to use debates, though in monochrome.

John F. Kennedy was healthy, tanned and relaxed for the first of the 1960 presidential debates, whereas Richard Nixon was sweaty, refusing makeup and having recovered from an illness.

Following the first of the 1960 presidential debates, television viewers favoured John F. Kennedy.

Chicago, in which Dave Garroway pioneered a casual television style being exported to New York, but which also brought Walter Cronkite to TV prominence, housed the first 1960 presidential debate.

Mirroring its host city and its innovative and influential television philosophy in the first ever American presidential debate on September 26, 1960, John F. Kennedy was tanned and healthy.

Richard Nixon was conversely stiff and sweaty, mirroring early New York-centric television.

Not confined to Chicago. which houses Walt Disney, Dave Garroway, the political rituals and the first presidential debate, Illinois is a US state that also births US President Ronald Reagan.

Subsequently, the mid-1960's US election was held, nearly one year after the JFK assassination.

Besides, the first US presidential election in an era after the JFK assassination was also the first one to include Washington D.C. as a participant.

Likewise, the second US presidential election being held in this era after the JFK assassination was the first to provide major election coverage on network television in colour.

Also in Chicago, the International Amphitheatre hosted the late-1960's DNC ritual.

Due to changes in the Democratic nomination for America's presidency, coupled with violent anti-war protests, the late-1960's DNC shattered the old boss system and led to the voter-driven one.

The Miami Beach Convention Centre hosted the 1972 political conventions, with the Democratic one providing a new guard after the violence-laden Chicago.

George McGovern, who, with Donald Fraser, led the eponymous commission, became selected as the Democratic nominee for US President in 1972.

Between 1969 and 1972, the McGovern-Fraser Commission established 18 guidelines that changed the primary voting system.

Conversely, the 1972 DNC ritual was marked by dysfunction.

Whereas the traditional boss system used white male elites, the 18 guidelines of the McGovern-Fraser Commission included females, minorities and youngsters.

Plus, this 1972 US presidential election was the first one in which the voting age was 18, which was 3 numbers down from 21 in the past, under the 26th Amendment.

For America's bicentennial election, presidential debates have their revival, but in full colour and as a permanent fixture, plus the introduction of the vice-presidential answer and the red/blue map.

Presidential debates were on hiatus between 1960 and the US bicentennial election campaign, due to communication laws/choices by frontrunners to stop Richard Nixon's 1960 debate.

Laws were revised by the FCC to revive presidential debates for the bicentennial election.

The Walnut Street Theatre, based in Philadelphia's Centre City, was the base for the first presidential debate after a hiatus, but also the first not held in a TV studio.

For the 3rd bicentennial presidential debate, the College of William & Mary was the first educational institution to host one of its kind.

In addition, the bicentennial presidential debates also pioneered the debate for Vice-President, but also broke ground by having the first women to be moderators.

James Hoge, who was from the Chicago Sun-Times, was the first ever moderator of a vice-presidential debate.

Hosting the first ever vice-presidential debate was the Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas.

Except for 1980, vice-presidential debates have been a fixture since the bicentennial election, but also a permanent fixture since the 1984 US presidential election.

The League of Women Voters sponsored the bicentennial, 1980 and 1984 US presidential debates.

Starting with the US debates being held in the late-1980's era, the Commission on Presidential Debates replaced the League of Women Voters as their sponsor.

In the 1980 and 1984 US presidential debates, Ronald Reagan is influenced by Hollywood.

Ronald Reagan's birth state Illinois houses Chicago, which, in turn, roots the innovative and influential television philosophy, which he used in the 1980 and 1984 US debates.

With the CPD replacing the LWV for the sponsorship of the US election debates in the late-1980's, Jim Lehrer (of the News Hour on PBS) began moderating them.

From the late-1980's to the early-2010's, Jim Lehrer was known as the Dean of Moderators.

Praised for his low-key and non-intrusive approach that focused on the US presidential candidates, Jim Lehrer moderated 12 US presidential/vice-presidential debates

1996 is when Jim Lehrer moderated all 3 debates, 2 for president, 1 for vice-president.

Bill Clinton was healthy, tanned, youthful and relaxed for the 1996 presidential debates, whereas Bob Dole was frail.

After two of these 1996 presidential debates, many favoured Bill Clinton.

Chicago, in which Dave Garroway pioneered a casual television style being brought to New York, also housed the 1996 Democratic National Convention.

Similar to JFK in the 1960 presidential debates, but also mirroring the host city of this 1996 DNC, Bill Clinton was youthful and energetic, using the Chicago School, in the 1996 presidential debates.

Having been compounded by the injuries that he suffered during the Second World War, Bob Dole was described as being staid and old-fashioned for the 1996 US presidential debates.

Plus, Bob Dole, like the similarly-injured Richard Nixon in the 1960 US presidential debates, mirrored early New York TV for the 1996 debates.

For Bill Clinton, in the 1996 US presidential debates, he conversely had the TV movement (which was rooted in Chicago), like the similarly-youthful JFK in the 1960 debates.

Indeed, having hosted the first ever presidential debate on September 26, 1960, Chicago also hosted the 1996 Democratic National Convention, a difference of 36 years.

Due to the success of the 1996 debates, Jim Lehrer moderated all 3 presidential debates in the first ones being held in the 21st century, with CNN's Bernard Shaw handling the VP one.

Mirroring British tradition for the bicentennial US election, NBC assigned the red colour to the liberal Democrats, blue to the conservative Republicans.

CBS also used NBC's British-style election trend for the 1980 election, as did CNN.

ABC, under Roone Arledge, inverted the British-style election trend being used by its rivals NBC and CBS for the 1980 election, assigning the red to the Republicans, blue to the Democrats.

Back to CBS, its 1984 US presidential election coverage matched ABC's "Red for GOP" mantra.

On cable, CNN used the "Red for GOP" mantra that both ABC and CBS used for the guard-changing American presidential election in the early-1990's.

NBC circumvented British tradition by matching the "Red for GOP" mantra that two of the Big Three broadcasters and 24-hour news channels used for the 1996 US presidential election, like ABC.

However, the red for NBC's 1996 US presidential election coverage is slightly pinkish.

This "Red for GOP" mantra was officially solidified for the first US presidential election in the 21st century, notably through the Florida recount.

Robert Abel & Associates was rooted in its paradox: Robert Abel (Saul Bass/John Whitney) and Con Pederson (Lester Novros from Disney).

From the bicentennial presidential election to the 1984 election, CBS News had commissioned Robert Abel & Associates to animate the opening graphics for its Campaign coverage.

The director of the animated intro sequence for CBS' bicentennial Campaign coverage being created by Robert Abel & Associates is Richard Taylor.

CBS' 1972 US presidential election coverage used a symbol being created in the Aki Lines typeface by Akihiko Seki; its cinematic intro sequence was by Edstan and directed by Lou Dorfsman.

NBC's 1980 US presidential election coverage had an cinematic intro by Bill Feinganbaum.

Whereas the nationally-televised US presidential elections used film-based animation for their opening sequences in the past, the 1984 one (and subsequent ones) used full 3D computer graphics.

Pacific Data Images (PDI) and Cranston/Csuri respectively did the animations for the intro sequences being used for the 1984 US presidential election broadcasts by NBC and ABC.

The Dubner CBG-2 was used for real-time 3D animation using its Curve Draw tool, aside from Robert Abel's intro sequence, both for CBS' coverage of the 1984 US presidential election.

NBC, ABC and CNN utilized 2D real-time graphics for their 1984 US presidential election coverage, whereas CBS used 3D real-time CGI for its 1984 one.

Incidentally, 3D CGI graphics for CBS' live coverage of the 1984 US presidential election juxtaposed cinematic animated intros and real-time graphics, leading to others worldwide.

Whitney/Demos did the on-air graphics for CBS' coverage of the late-1980's US presidential election, utilizing Symbolics, CM-2 and Sony D1, with Rhythm & Hues doing the intro.

Both Whitney/Demos and Rhythm & Hues arose from Digital Productions and Robert Abel.

3D Creations, which was run by Steve Giangrassso, animated the intro sequence for NBC's late-1980's American presidential election coverage.

Novocom/GRFX, under Lewis Hall, did the intro and 3D animations for CBS' early-1990's presidential election coverage.

Telezign did the intro for NBC's early-1990's presidential election coverage, using Alias Research.

For the nationally-televised coverage of the 1996 US presidential election, the Onyx systems from SGI solidified real-time 3D animation beyond intros, mirroring CBS' in 1984.

In similar fashion to the 1972 US presidential election, where Richard Nixon clinched 49 US states in a significant landslide, Ronald Reagan did the same feat in 1984.

Both George McGovern and Walter Mondale were Democrats who earned just one single state, besides Washington D.C., in a GOP victory in the 1972 and 1984 US presidential elections.

George McGovern won Massachusetts in 1972, Walter Mondale won his native Minnesota in 1984.