it seems that we have visually upped the ante of presidential propaganda this election cycle. the movement inadvertently started with the 2008 shepard fairey “hope” poster, and has flourished since. here are a few posters of elections past, to illustrate the best visuals of their era:

taft 1908 // truman 1948 // kennedy 1968 // mccarthy 1968 // reagan 1984

not only have the presidential hopefuls broadened their visual horizons, they have also expand the applications of those visuals far beyond bumper stickers, posters, and pins.

obama, has embraced the power of youtube, and harnessed the power of the infographic for complex data as well as immersing the viewer in the story.

the success of obama’s visuals has not been lost on the romney campaign. they have taken to twitter, facebook, smart phones, and blogging to interact and with their followers and provide a cohesive campaign with a broad surface area.

not only have the candidates been improving their visual representation, third parties are getting involved as well. the national constitution center has an interactive exhibit by the chopping block called “election central” that takes the visual tone of the ongoing campaigns.

so do you think the effort candidates are putting in to reach their constituents will improve their campaign, or do you think they will fall on blind eyes? do you think the age demographic of voters and those who use these digital outlets align enough or are these campaigns ahead of their time?