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The first of the Great Debates, between Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts and the incumbent Vice President Richard Nixon on September 26, 1960, centered around domestic issues. The topic of the next debate, on October 7, was a clash over U.S. policy regarding two small islands off the Chinese coast, and on October 13, this controversy continued. On October21, the final debate, the candidates focused on American Cuban relations.

Few of the 70 million viewers could have fathomed what this first–ever televised presidential debate augured, not only for this specific series of debates, but more importantly for the preeminent role the fledgling medium would play in the future of the political arena.

A pallid Nixon arrived at the Chicago CBS studios after a grueling day of campaigning. The previous August a knee infection had sidelined him. He was still twenty pounds underweight, and he perspired profusely in an ill–fitting shirt. Moreover, he declined makeup to burnish his hospital pallor. The freshly–painted studio backdrop had dried to an ashen hue that obscured his matching suit.

The Democratic contender by contrast exuded a robust glow after a month of campaigning in California. He had spent his day rehearsing potential questions and relaxing. An aide later admitted that he supplemented his natural glow with a smidge of makeup. He was fit, trim, and confident.

Despite the remarkably similar agendas and arguments of the Republican and the Democrat, TV viewers unequivocally believed Kennedy to be the victor – whereas people who had followed the debates on the radio held the opposite opinion. The age of TV had arrived, and the subsequent party shuffle proved the undeniable potency of television.