Browse Exhibits (4 total)
Prelude to the Presidency
7 episodes, 1956, WQED (Pittsburgh)
From WNET:
"This seven program series, originating from station WQED, features top men in the political field in an overall depth study of American political procedures leading up to election of a president. A major portion of the first six programs are documentary in nature, employing narration and film clips from the National Broadcasting Company film Library in New York. Research materials for the series were prepared by Dr. William Keefe of Chatham College and Dr. Edward Cooke of the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Albert B. Martin, director of the Citizenship Clearing House of Western Pennsylvania, serves as host for the series. Filmed interviews feature seven US Senators: Henry Cabot Lodge; James Farley, former national chairman of the Democratic Party; Mayor David L. Lawrence of Pittsburgh; and Dr. Elmer Schattsneider, head of the American Political Science Association. This series was financed by a grant from the Falk Foundation and the project was coordinated through the Citizenship Clearing House of Western Pennsylvania."
From Capitol Hill: party government and the United States Congress
8 episodes, 1958, WYES (New Orleans)
From WNET:
"The purpose of this series is to examine and explain the purposes, processes, and problems of Congress; to analyze the formal and informal power structure in Congress; to investigate the role of political parties in the legislative process; and to investigate the effects of Congress on the character, organization, success, and failures of political parties. Advocates of party reform frequently ignore or misinterpret the direct relationship between the character of American parties and the character and composition of Congress. It is the purpose of this series to examine this relationship and determine why it exists, as well as to assess suggested reforms. Attention also will be accorded, where appropriate, to the roles and responsibility of the citizen in party affairs, and to the place of pressure groups in the political and legislative process, with the aim of presenting a complete, balanced description of the political process in Congress."
Hats in the ring
10 episodes, 1956, Johns Hopkins University
From WNET:
"This 10-part series is concerned not with election campaigns but with the intricate political processes that wind up with nominations in the two major parties. Featured as lecturer-guide is Malcolm Moos, professor of political science at Johns Hopkins University, who served on the team conducting a comprehensive study of the 1952 nominating conventions for the American Political Science Association. While the series is designed primarily to show how a candidate is nominated, it also will focus on the history of presidential nominations. Produced for the Center by Johns Hopkins University, over one hundred stills, maps and films are used in the series to dramatically illustrate American political processes."
Decision: the Constitution in action
7 episodes, 1959, Steven Sharff Productions, Inc.
From WNET:
"Each program in the series deals with a US Supreme Court decision of recent history involving a question of constitutional interpretation. The cases are reenacted by many of the real-life people involved and filmed on location in communities across the nation to underscore the proposition that these have been issues affecting everyday people in the course of their normal lives. The series focuses on the stresses which the Constitution has undergone and the conflicting issues involved in interpreting this document. The programs were produced by the Center for Mass Communication of Columbia University Press. Herbert Wechsler, Columbia University Professor of Law and formerly Assistant Attorney General of the US, was consultant. Erik Barnouw, national chairman of the Writers Guild of America, was writer and executive producer for the series. Stephen Sharff, documentarian, winner of awards at Edinburgh and Venice Film Festivals, was producer-director."