Obama's Non-stop Visibility Has Worked -- So Far

Barack Obama continues to be the most visible, media-accessible President ever.

Americans are not accustomed to seeing images of their President all the time; in fact, some argue that a sense of distance is what creates an aura of dignity and importance.

If you have access to a TV during the day, you see this "high-visibility" approach on display even more because one event (or more) in Obama's daily schedule is often open to the press and the cable news shows refer frequently to what's next in the President's schedule. And, while the President says he never watches the cable shows, his staff apparently pays close attention. It seems anytime the White House wants to get the word out on anything, MSNBC and/or CNN are ready to help.

Does more than a day pass when Obama is not on television? People have asked, with good reason: Is he over-exposed?

I believe he is a bit over-exposed, but, it has not hurt him - yet. In fact, Obama's accessibility has been a critical part of his success as President so far and contributes significantly to his high public approval ratings in polls.

So, after four months in office, how much longer will the Obama team stay in "campaign mode" by organizing the President's schedule in such an "open," media-friendly way?

My guess is this dynamic will continue for most of 2009 because Obama views the media coverage as essential to maintaining his popularity and achieving major accomplishments in his all-important first year. Displaying leadership during the nation's worst economic crisis since the Depression was an initial test.

Rahm Emanuel, Obama's chief of staff, in March, was asked by CNN's Larry King if he was concerned about the President's "over-exposure" after Obama had just appeared in a "60 Minutes" interview and on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

"I think in this troubled time...the people expect the President to talk to them, walk them through his thinking," Emanuel told King, " - why he makes the decisions he makes, what are the tradeoffs to those decisions -- and carry them through this process."

I think Emanuel was right, particularly given Obama's strength in explaining complex policies articulately in layman's terms.

Further, it made sense for Obama, a new, young, inexperienced and first African-American President, to be visible and "hands-on" simply to establish his credibility and capabilities to the American people.

This President's team has created a genuinely modern-day White House that's truly compatible with today's technology - the Internet and all that goes with it. You know the young aides wandering the halls of the White House are using the same Blackberries, cell phones and gadgetry they used from Obama's Chicago campaign headquarters. Put it this way: It's not surprising that the "Obama machine" is still cranking out emails to supporters and contributors - with updates and pleas for support of the President's key proposals such as health care reform.

The Obama White House is a "24-7" operation that's always ready to feed the insatiable "Beast" that comprises today's news media - including the Internet, the major blogs and other new players. This White House is not caught off guard; rather, it is in a pro-active mode, always "feeding" the press.

The one common thread I see - operationally - to past administrations is, ironically, the Reagan White House during its first term. Why? That Reagan team - with James Baker as chief of staff and Michael Deaver orchestrating communications - was highly skilled in "managing" daily events and crafting "messages of the day" in disciplined fashion.

Despite its effectiveness so far, I worry a bit about this "all Obama - all the time" approach. Any leader can over-do it and risk reverberations when he or she encounters a rough patch or two in the future. When a President is the public eye too often, said Dee Dee Myers, a former press secretary in the Clinton White House, "at some point, people stop listening," she told Politico in March.

Myers suggested that Obama needed more surrogates to speak in his place some of the time. I strongly agree with her. Who are Obama's regular surrogates? We see David Axelrod, his senior advisor, occasionally, and, Emanuel once in a while, but, we should see members of the US House and Senate who articulate, thoughtful, loyal supporters of the President, speaking on his behalf a lot more.

William Arruda, a personal branding expert, was quoted in the same Politico article, as saying that if Obama remains "the face of everything that happens," it creates a risk for his Administration that when something bad occurs, people will associate it only with the President himself.

Will all this exposure in Obama's first year somehow end up hurting him more in those "down" times? Perhaps. It may compound the magnitude of negative developments. Maybe it won't matter. Either way, I do sense that this White House is quite accustomed to getting its way with media coverage so far. Think about it. It's hard to identify any sustained negative period of coverage so far, but, it's early, still. The White House has not had any real problems with leaks to the press (from within) so far.

Then again, how will this White House react when it does face more criticism? How will its senior staff behave when things go badly or they cannot control "the message"? They'll find new approaches, hopefully.

One gets the sense that the Obama administration is going "all-out" to put together several major policy victories this year. It's a "go-for-broke" strategy. They're working at a fast, furious pace - moving from one task to the next - and, they're doing so with their "star player," Barack Obama, on the court, in the game, for the full 48 minutes.