Richard Nixon’s 1952 Checkers speech
E800879
Richard Nixon’s 1952 Checkers speech was a nationally televised address in which the then–vice-presidential candidate emotionally defended himself against accusations of financial impropriety, famously referencing his family dog Checkers.
Statements (50)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
historical event
ⓘ
political speech ⓘ |
| accusationType | financial impropriety ⓘ |
| alsoKnownAs |
Checkers speech
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Fund speech ⓘ |
| audienceScope | national ⓘ |
| broadcastFrom | Hollywood, Los Angeles, California NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| campaignOf | Dwight D. Eisenhower NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| context | 1952 United States presidential election NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| country |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| date | 1952-09-23 ⓘ |
| defenseStrategy |
detailed disclosure of personal finances
ⓘ
emotional appeal to middle-class values ⓘ |
| estimatedViewers | approximately 60 million ⓘ |
| famousLine |
"regardless of what they say about it, we’re going to keep it"
ⓘ
"the one thing that we did get was a dog" ⓘ |
| famousReference | family dog Checkers ⓘ |
| historicalSignificance |
early example of using television to shape political image
ⓘ
influenced future use of televised addresses by candidates ⓘ landmark in American political communication ⓘ |
| location | Los Angeles, California NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| mainTheme |
defense against accusations of financial impropriety
ⓘ
personal integrity ⓘ transparency about personal finances ⓘ |
| medium |
radio
ⓘ
television ⓘ |
| mentionedPerson |
Dwight D. Eisenhower
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Pat Nixon NERFINISHED ⓘ his daughters Tricia and Julie ⓘ |
| namedAfter | Checkers NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| network |
ABC
ⓘ
CBS ⓘ NBC ⓘ |
| officeSought | Vice President of the United States NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| politicalOutcome | helped preserve Nixon’s vice-presidential candidacy ⓘ |
| politicalParty | Republican Party ⓘ |
| result | Nixon remained on the Republican ticket NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| rhetoricalAppeal |
appeal to ordinary American families
ⓘ
self-portrayal as a man of modest means ⓘ |
| speaker | Richard Nixon NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| subjectOf |
historical analyses of political rhetoric
ⓘ
media studies on television and politics ⓘ |
| subsequentEvent | Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon won the 1952 election NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| subsequentOfficeHeldBySpeaker |
President of the United States
ⓘ
Vice President of the United States NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| tone |
defensive
ⓘ
emotional ⓘ populist ⓘ |
| triggeringIssue | allegations about a secret political expense fund ⓘ |
| year | 1952 ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.