Books in Brief: The Campaign of the Century

The Campaign of the Century: Upton Sinclair’s Race for Governor of California and the Birth of Media Politics, by Greg Mitchell (Random House, 662 pp., $27.50)

IN 1934, Upton Sinclair, muckraking journalist and socialist, shocked America by capturing California’s Democratic gubernatorial nomination. In this richly detailed book, particularly topical in the year of Perot, Greg Mitchell reminds us that in politics anything can happen. But the main topic here is the rise of “media campaigning.” Hollywood, run by conservative moguls, was horrified by the Sinclair candidacy. The opposition to Sinclair was led by Louis B. Mayer. Helped by public-relations genius Albert Lasker and others, Mayer employed every medium available—radio dramas, movie shorts, direct mail—to defeat Sinclair, and the truth be damned. Mitchell presents his story against a colorful background, weaving in, simply, everyone: Franklin D. Roosevelt, H. L. Mencken, Will Rogers, a young Earl Warren, an even younger Richard Nixon. At times, the background and cameo players overwhelm the main story line-Mitchell could have used the help of a more critical-minded editor. But for those who love politics, especially California politics, this is an illuminating and enjoyable book.

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Franklin Delano Roosevelt

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The Campaign of the Century: Upton Sinclair’s Race for Governor of California and the Birth of Media Politics, by Greg Mitchell (Random House, 662 pp., $27.50)

IN 1934, Upton Sinclair, muckraking journalist and socialist, shocked America by capturing California’s Democratic gubernatorial nomination. In this richly detailed book, particularly topical in the year of Perot, Greg Mitchell reminds us that in politics anything can happen. But the main topic here is the rise of “media campaigning.” Hollywood, run by conservative moguls, was horrified by the Sinclair candidacy. The opposition to Sinclair was led by Louis B. Mayer. Helped by public-relations genius Albert Lasker and others, Mayer employed every medium available—radio dramas, movie shorts, direct mail—to defeat Sinclair, and the truth be damned. Mitchell presents his story against a colorful background, weaving in, simply, everyone: Franklin D. Roosevelt, H. L. Mencken, Will Rogers, a young Earl Warren, an even younger Richard Nixon. At times, the background and cameo players overwhelm the main story line-Mitchell could have used the help of a more critical-minded editor. But for those who love politics, especially California politics, this is an illuminating and enjoyable book.