The Resurrection of John McCain - TIME

James Carney, in his article The Resurrection of John McCain, describes the Presidential Candidate’s journey back into the public’s favor. He begins by describing the moment in which after feeling defeated, McCain hears the announcement that he has won South Carolina. Carney then briefly describes how McCain fell out and then back into favor. The rest of the article concerns itself mostly with describing McCain’s attributes and states reasons why he is back in public favor and furthermore why he deserves to be. This article is targeted to subscribers of Time Magazine, regarded as a credible news and information source, which can be assumed to be those interested in issues such as these. As it is a subscription it is also most likely that readers are not passive, but instead actively reading the magazine’s articles. Though active reading might not mean very in depth reading, it does differ from the experience of watching a commercial in which little thought it put into what the senses are taking in.
Though the article is an uplifting look at a presidential candidate, in many ways it is political propaganda. It can be argued that it is almost impossible for political reporting to not be considered propaganda because even the slightest word or adjective seems to represent the author’s opinion on the subject. Political races are full of ideas, emotions, and opinions that are extremely hard to avoid when reporting on happenings within it. However, in this article there seems to be no effort to avoid such ideas, emotions, and opinions. This would make sense were the article designated as a story about McCain, but the magazine doesn’t designate it as such.
The article appeals especially to the pathos, or the emotions. It describes McCain’s experiences throughout his political career by saying “He's been shot out of the sky and held captive, hung from ropes by his two broken arms and beaten senseless. This is his second run for President; he lost before, has nearly lost again and has been all but disowned by his party” (Carney 1). It is understandable to describe McCain’s experiences as difficult, but using such superfluous adjectives such as hung and broken are meant to gain the reader’s sympathy. This use of adjectives gives McCain the stereotypical “underdog” status, which though it may not triumph, is highly favored. The article might describe his ways as “refreshing and vaguely masochistic” (Carney 2), which doesn’t seem very favorable, but will then go on to say that “even when he knows it's in his short-term political interest to dodge a question or adjust his message, he often just won't — or can't — do it” (Carney 2). This quality is probably not something that the average American wouldn’t like in this day of skepticism and the intense desire for truth.
The article would do well, in my opinion, to lose the adjectives and let McCain’s actions speak for him. The article presents a thorough examination of McCain’s political experiences and describes his platforms, but doesn’t simply present these things. It instead extensively uses adjectives and phrases to describe these things in such a way that in the end the reader cannot help but appreciate if not support the presidential candidate. Though I don’t think an article can be condemned simply because it quickly changes someone’s mind but can be condemned if it employs superfluous adjectives and an appeal to emotions to do so. This article can clearly be put in the latter category and as such can clearly be called political propaganda.

The Resurrection of John McCain - TIME