Campaign Advance Man Josh King On White House Stagecraft, Photo-Ops Gone Wrong & The "Hat Rule"

My guest Josh King is a master of political optics. He is the former White House director of production for presidential events under President Bill Clinton. He has a new book called OFF SCRIPT: AN ADVANCE MAN’S GUIDE TO WHITE HOUSE STAGECRAFT, CAMPAIGN SPECTACLE, AND POLITICAL SUICIDE. Today he talks about some of the most infamous political blunders caught on camera including the infamous Dukakis in the tank image and his experience on the ill-fated Dukakis campaign. He’ll discuss how advance teams create memorable campaign events, how the best planned photo-op can backfire, why no President EVER wears a hat, and the pitfalls of political optics in the age of social media, including how to avoid creating a meme-able photo. If you enjoyed today’s episode, order OFF SCRIPT: AN ADVANCE MAN’S GUIDE TO WHITE HOUSE STAGECRAFT, CAMPAIGN SPECTACLE, AND POLITICAL SUICIDE on Amazon or download the audiobook for free through a special trial offer just for our listeners at www.audibletrial.com/kickasspolitics.com. You can follow Josh King at www.polioptics.com or on Twitter at @Polioptics. Please subscribe to KickAss Politics on iTunes and leave us a review. You can also help us reach our fundraising goal for this year and donate at www.gofundme.com/kickasspolitics. Or go to the website for the show at www.kickasspolitics.com and click on the donate button. Thanks for listening!