Media Dilemma: Is A Politicians Family Off Limits?
The review was scathing. “She cannot sing very well,” it said. “She is flat a good deal of the time.” So the singer’s father did what any loyal dad might. He put pen to paper and dashed off a blistering nastygram. “Some day I hope to meet you,” he wrote. “When that happens you’ll need a new nose, a lot of beefsteak for black eyes, and perhaps a supporter below!” The year was 1950, and the singer was, it’s true, receiving far more scrutiny than some of her colleagues on stage. Because at the time of the review, Margaret Truman’s angry dad happened to be the president of the United States. When the offspring of politicians interact with the public, things can get dicey. And understandably so: There’s no human issue more personal, more natural than the parental instinct of “Leave my children alone.” Yet sometimes politicians have invited us in, deliberately or otherwise. John F. Kennedy’s kids became national icons because their parents let the cameras in. LBJ’s daughter, Lucy, stumped on
