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Manchin – Maverick
in the Middle?
W e s t V i r g i n i a U n i v e r s i t y
P I R e e d S c h o o l o f J o u r n a l i s m
I M C 6 3 9 P - P o l i t i c a l M a r k e t i n g
W e e k 4 W r i t i n g A s s i g n m e n t
2 / 1 1 / 2 0 1 2
Matthew Eric Minor
Assessing the image structure of a conservative Senate
Democrat whose record ‘defies prediction’

Minor – MANCHIN MAVERICK IN THE MIDDLE? 1
Introduction
West Virginia’s junior Senator Joseph Anthony “Joe” Manchin, III finds himself in a
number of interesting political positions in early 2013. A Democrat, having yet to complete a full
first term in the Senate, he stands poised to become his home state’s senior Senator when Jay
Rockefeller retires at the end of his term in 2014. While both of West Virginia’s Senate seats
have been held by Democrats since the mid-to-late 1950s, it is possible that Manchin will serve
alongside a Republican freshman in 2014 (Hohmann and Brennan, 2013). West Virginia, long
believed to be a Democrat stronghold has gradually shifted to Republican federal representation.
Two of the state’s three Congressional seats are held by Republicans. Democrats maintain
control of both houses of the state legislature, the Secretary of State’s office and the Governor’s
office from whence Manchin ascended from state to federal elected office.
Manchin, a fiscal and social conservative “Blue Dog” Democrat has been able to weather
the “reddening” of West Virginia, largely because he has a solid record as a fiscally-conservative
Governor, a fierce defender of the Second Amendment and willing to buck Washington
Democrats on matters of environmental protection, which are often framed as being “anti-coal”
in a state for which coal is both economic foundation and a source of pride.
This analysis will serve as a “brand audit” of Manchin’s political image, with an aim
toward providing guidance as the political skills, attributes and image components that made him
a success at home begin to bump against the expectations of his party and his colleagues in the
upper chamber. This analysis will assess Manchin’s core features, peripheral features, nonverbal
behavior and nonverbal behavior as both political marketing assets and liabilities. It will also
evaluate the impact external variables, such as voters’ needs and expectations as well as the
current state of affairs.

In traditional marketing, this exercise would be similar to a brand inventory, in which a
marketing manager would examine all sources of a brand’s equity with the goal of arriving at a
profile of the current marketing and branding efforts of a company’s goods or services (Keller,
2008). However, in this exercise, political marketing tools are brought into play as the “product”
being inventoried is the candidate’s public image. Manchin’s political image structure will be
analyzed according to Cwalina’s (2011) model of candidate image structure.
Figure 1-Cwalina's Candidate Image Structure Model
Core Features
At the center of Cwalina’s imaging model are a candidate’s core features. According to
Cwalina, this includes “personality features that can refer to a voters’ beliefs about human nature
(especially integrity and competence) (2011). Simply put, it is “those things that create who we

are.” Cwalina further defines the core of the ideal candidates image as including two dimensions:
morality (or integrity) and ability (or competence). The defining attributes of morality include
frankness, helpfulness, reliability and honesty. The defining attributes of ability include
persistence, hard work and qualifications (Cwalina, 2011, p. 145). An analysis of Manchin’s
attributes matching these core dimensions follows.
The West Virginia Encyclopedia refers to Joe Manchin as “the scion of a large and
energetic Marion County (West Virginia) family, active in business, the professions, and
politics” (Wallace, 2012). This is perhaps Manchin’s earliest and one of his most important core
features. His uncle, A. James Manchin was among the state’s best-known politicians, serving as
secretary of state and state treasurer and himself once considered gubernatorial material”
(Wallace, 2012). His father owned a carpet and furniture store and his grandfather owned a
grocery store. Both men served as mayor of Manchin’s hometown of Farmington, WV. As a
descendant of a notable family, Manchin has at the core of his political image, his family’s
heritage as Italian/Czech immigrants, independent business owners and a successful history in
elected office.
Figure 2-Joe Manchin III's Official Portrait

Manchin played football at West Virginia University, which is itself a crucial image
component in a state which values both the University and its football program. After an injury
ended his playing days, he earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from WVU,
returned to Marion County to operate the family business and later an energy-brokering company
(Wallace, 2012). Athletics foster an image of vigor, health, competitiveness, teamwork,
leadership, drive and respect. His ability to recover from injury shows perseverance, his
willingness to return to his family business shows loyalty and his ability to run a complex
energy-brokering company shows his ability to find his own way.
He has been married only once, to his current wife, Gayle. They have three children
together. He was West Virginia’s first Roman Catholic Governor and the first Italian-America to
be elected to his state’s chief executive office. These core attributes contribute to Manchin’s
morality score, as he is perceived as a family man from strong family roots with strong ethnic
and religious heritages.
Figure 3-Manchin Facial Symmetry Analysis
He is a tall male, aged 65 years with thick salt-and-pepper hair, and tanned skin
suggesting both the wisdom and experience of age, but simultaneously projecting an image of
health. He is rarely seen wearing glasses. His face is fairly symmetrical, which is associated

with genetic fitness (Rhodes and Zebrowitz, 2002) and with an extroverted and open personality
(Neave, et al., 2005). This has not left Manchin’s physical appearance untouchable by
caricaturists, who emphasize his thick hair, his larger, hooked nose and thin-lipped smile.
Figure 4-Joe Manchin Caricature by Kerry Waghorn
These traits, while not apparently setting Manchin back, could, as his profile elevates on the
national stage, become additional assets to his core features. According to Maarek, “certain
physical traits…then become components of (a candidate’s) audiovisual image. Ronald
Reagan’s near-permanent tan is a good example of this kind, as is the large moustache of the
former Polish President Lech Walesa, or the wine stain birthmark on Mikhail Gorbachev’s
forehead, popularized by cartoonists the world over” (Maarek, 2011).
All of these features represent Manchin’s “core” around which his peripheral image
features are situated.

Peripheral Features
Manchin’s rapid ascent from State Delegate to State Senator to gubernatorial candidate to
Secretary of State to Governor to U.S. Senator has served both as a peripheral feature and as a
test of his peripheral features. By regularly winning elections to higher and higher office, he has
built equity with voters who are used to his leadership style and comfortable with his brand in a
variety of elected offices. Voters have become comfortable with attaching a variety of
prestigious titles (Secretary, Governor, Senator) to his name. It is not incongruous for a West
Virginia voter to think of Joe Manchin as an increasingly powerful elected official with larger
and larger sets of responsibilities and constituents to whom he must answer.
Figure 5 – A young Manchin as Secretary of State at WV State Capitol
As Governor, Manchin was well-known within his own state, but crises, such as the
highly-publicized deaths of coal miners in the explosions at Sago (in 2006) and Upper Big
Branch (in 2010) thrust Manchin into the national stage. His hourly news conferences on the
rescue efforts drew live coverage from cable news networks and gave Manchin the opportunity
to present himself as a compassionate consoler-in-chief to the grieving communities. Appearing
in denim-colored shirts with sleeves rolled up, Manchin had an opportunity to also present

himself as knowledgeable about the mining industry and provide a buffer between West
Virginians who were angry about the deaths and the state’s mine operators who are also very
politically powerful. Standing in this gap allowed Manchin to broker new mine safety regulations
that appeased coal miners without fully alienating coal operators.
Figure 6 - Manchin Manages Upper Big Branch Mining Disaster in April 2010
Nonverbal Behavior
Prior to Manchin’s ascent to the Senate, he was, as West Virginia’s Governor, in the
politically difficult position of appointing a successor to the late Robert C. Byrd. While many
Manchin critics considered it fait accompli that he would simply appoint himself, Manchin took
great care to frame his approach around the death of a beloved West Virginia icon with an
abundance of decorum and respect. Note Manchin’s posture and body language in this press
photo as he and Secretary of State Natalie Tenant ponder the appropriate succession plan for
Byrd’s seat.

Figure 5-Manchin, Secretary of State solemnly discuss succession for Byrd's seat
While Manchin is tall and potentially imposing, he does not project an overly
intimidating image. He is prone to large, sweeping hand gestures, frequently spreading his
fingers and then interlocking them as he brings them together. This non-verbal gesture serves as
a visual cue to remind voters of his desire to reach mutually beneficial solutions through coming
together where he is, in the middle. Manchin is much more expressive with his hands than he is
with his facial features. His gestures are much larger when speaking to a large group, when he is
on television or speaking from a stage.
Figure 7-Manchin is more expressive with his hands than with his face

As seen in this image from his website, when interacting with voters one-on-one,
Manchin is much more likely to lower himself by sitting or stooping, leaning in and speaking at
their level. One could infer that in this more intimate setting, he’s even physically restraining his
hands from making large, potentially intimidating gestures. When analyzing Manchin’s posture,
tone and speaking pattern, one gets the impression that he allows his large physical presence to
assert power while toning down his gestures, stridence of voice and level of aggressiveness to
convey compassion, friendliness and approachability.
Figure 8 - Manchin "tones it down" when speaking one-on-one
Verbal Behavior
According to Cwalina, these nonverbal behaviors “should be completed by an appropriate
‘soundtrack.’ The candidate has to say something!” (2011, p. 135). The most obvious verbal
behavior built from Manchin’s core is his “pro-life” stance on abortion, which is counter to many
in his party, but fully in line with his Roman Catholic core attribute.
Manchin projects himself as gregarious, friendly, sensitive, even-tempered and even
apologetic on occasion. When several of the state’s barbers bristled at a campaign ad that
suggested paying for a haircut was tantamount to government waste, Manchin immediately

issued an apology. The ad, which featured his wife Gayle cutting his hair (as the candidate insists
that she does whenever possible) and then teasing him about being “cheap” further served to
push his stable marriage (core attribute) and his fiscal conservatism (peripheral attribute) into the
forefront of his overall image. In an election cycle in which Manchin’s reelection chances did not
likely hinge on the support of barbers and hairdressers, this message was a relatively low-risk
proposition.
Figure 6- Manchin "Haircut" Senate Ad
However, Manchin, not wanting to offend any small business owners (such as barbers
and hairdressers) in his state issued an apology through the news media when questioned about
negative response to the ad, saying to station WTOV-TV "First of all, let me just say I am so
sorry. Truly sorry that anyone would take that was meant to be demeaning to any profession. I
can assure you that it was only done in this toxic atmosphere to be a little tongue-in-cheek, just
laugh a little bit” (Minor, 2012). This further served Manchin’s “nice guy” image by referring to
the “toxic atmosphere” that permeated his Senate campaign.
There has perhaps been no more dense packaging of Manchin’s political image into one
single marketing message than his award-winning “Dead Aim” TV spot, run during his 2010
campaign for the remainder of Byrd’s unexpired term. In it Manchin, dressed in rugged outdoor

gear, marches confidently and stone-faced toward the camera while providing voiceover
narration about how he bucked his own party during his short time in the U.S. Senate.
Manchin’s voiceover explains how he sued the EPA to preserve West Virginia coal jobs
and earned an A rating from the National Rifle Association. He then loads and sights up a
hunting rifle and proceeds to shoot a hole in a copy of the Cap and Trade bill posted on a tree
nearby.
Figure 9 - Manchin's "Dead Aim" Senatorial Campaign Ad
This :30 spot is dense with Manchin mythology and imagery. He is a rugged
outdoorsman. He is capable of being an ‘everyman.’ He is an action hero (complete with slow
motion walk) poised to defend West Virginia and her signature industry from environmental
bureaucrats. He knows the law well enough to sue the EPA which is a part of his own party’s
current administration. He’s not only a proud gun owner (and defender of the Second
Amendment), but he knows how to use a gun, needing only a single shot to hunt down and snuff
out an offensive piece of legislation. This :30 spot manages to capitalize on the positive assets of
Manchin’s core features (as a blue-collar native West Virginian), his peripheral features (as
someone who can and will physically protect his state’s best interest), his nonverbal behavior (as
a large man with an unexpressive face), his verbal behavior (on the issues of being “pro-coal”
and “pro-gun.” CBS News called it “one of the best ads of the year” and Manchin himself raved

about the performance of Global Strategy Group (GSG) which helped manage his 2010 special
election campaign. In GSG’s case study of his 2010 campaign, Manchin raved:
Our campaign was a perfect campaign in many ways. Global Strategy Group kept us
moving forward, on message and on track. I count on GSG to give me expert advice, and
to back it up with solid research We have a big job to do getting West Virginia back to
work, and Global Strategy Group is helping us do it right. (GSG, 2010)
Influence of Voter Expectations/State of Affairs
Image creation does not take place in a political vacuum. If it did, revisions and
adjustments in a candidate’s image would be unnecessary. However, according to Cwalina
(2011), all “image creation activities take place in particular sociopolitical and economical (sic)
conditions. That is why getting feedback from voters is so important.” A constant monitoring of
the image’s perception is important for maintaining it, regardless of the political campaign (p.
136). In its case study of Manchin’s Senate campaign, GSG analysts observed:
Despite (Manchin’s) personal popularity and high job approval ratings as Governor,
Manchin faced the prospect of running in an increasingly conservative state where the
president was unpopular and the Tea Party was energized and motivated (GSG, 2010).
While being a Democrat in state government was never a problem for Manchin, rising to
federal office put him in dangerous proximity to an unpopular President Obama (who, in 2012
failed to carry even one county in West Virginia. While there was speculation he was being
courted to caucus with Senate Republicans), Manchin told The Hill:
He is a proud Democrat, having been raised with the values of ‘always reaching out,
trying to help others have a better quality of life and help themselves’ and taking care of
those who cannot help themselves. But he said sometimes his party’s priorities in
Washington are ‘out of balance with…how we do business in West Virginia (Bolton,
2011).

Barack Obama’s unpopularity among the West Virginia electorate cannot be ignored as a
factor in Joe Manchin’s evolving political image. Manchin calls himself a proud Democrat and
had no qualms about appearing with and endorsing a post-Lewinsky scandal Bill Clinton.
Figure 10-Manchin Appears With Bill Clinton
Manchin has been (and must continue to be) more cautious about appearing chummy
with President Obama. Manchin’s 2010 and 2012 Republican opponent John Raese tried
(unsuccessfully) to run a campaign claiming Manchin would be a “rubber stamp” for Senate
Democratic Leader Harry Reid and President Obama. Images of Manchin and Obama appearing
friendly together were common before Manchin went to Washington.
Figure 11-Manchin and Obama smiling together with Sen. Byrd

Raese attempted to capitalize on images like this as he attempted to link Manchin to the
unpopular president, although the Manchin brand was strong enough to withstand it.
Figure 12-John Raese Senate Ad Targeting Manchin
The liberal-leaning Public Policy Polling organization found that Manchin got
“surprising” support from Republican and conservative voters in West Virginia, registering 46
percent approval rating and 36 percent disapproval rating among Republicans.
Since winning re-election, Manchin is now unleashed (at least for six years) to attempt to
further advance his brand and allow it to evolve. Manchin and former GOP Presidential
Candidate Jon Hunstman are the chairs of the reborn “No Labels” initiative aimed at finding bi-
partisan solutions to divisive issues such as immigration reform and gun control.

Figure 13-Manchin and Hunstman
Advice for Maintaining and Modifying Manchin’s Image Structure
Manchin, at least publicly, says he’s been unchanged by his short stint in Washington,
telling The Hill that his statements and positions have helped him “reaffirm that [I am] still the
same person I was” as governor and “I’m not going to change” (Bolton, 2011).
This is a delicate time for Manchin, however. Following the shooting at Sandy Hook
Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, Manchin initially appeared on MSNBC calling for
a reevaluation of the nation’s gun laws, suggesting, in his typical centrist position that
“everything should be on the table” (including limiting high-capacity magazines and access to
so-called “assault weapons”) and that both gun control advocates and his friends at the NRA
should be at the table. At the time, Manchin was the most strident pro-gun voice to make any sort
of statement about Newtown (since the NRA had gone into a temporary social and traditional
media blackout). Manchin eventually walked back on those statements, although it’s not clear if

he did so under pressure from the NRA, his constituents or his own reevaluation of his earlier
statements.
Figure 14-Manchin on MSNBC after Newtown Shootings

Whatever the motive, Manchin must be cautious when attempting to brand himself as an
agent and broker of compromise when suddenly taking a stance on a controversial issue that may
suddenly put him more in line with members of his party in Washington than his voting base
back home in West Virginia. Democrats at home offer a similar warning. "You're just real
careful with what you say and you have to be real consistent with what you say to different
audiences," said Michael Oliverio, a former Democratic West Virginia state senator. "We're in
the Internet age of politics where you can't say one thing to one group and something else to
another group” (Catalini, 2013). At the same time, Manchin cannot risk being so centrist as to be
impossible to pin down on difficult issues. At some point, he’s going to have to take a stand on
issues that will either alienate his colleagues in Washington (or potentially stunt his growth
there) or alienate the voters back home who sent him there.
And at some point, the Democratic party’s brand may need to push back against the
conservative Manchin in an act of self-preservation.
“It's hard to have a concrete brand when a guy like Manchin is part of your party,” wrote
Ezra Klein in the Washington post. “It'd be a bit like if Coca-Cola sold not just Cokes, but a
brand that spent its advertising budget convincing people that Coke was gross, and hired guys to
yell at people who ordered Cokes in stores” (2010).

References:
Bolton, A (Sept. 14, 2011). Manchin’s strategy for surviving 2012 in a red state: Bash President
Obama. The Hill (Online Edition) Retrieved Feb. 11, 2013 from
http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/181361-manchins-strategy-for-surviving-2012-in-
a-red-state-bash-obama-
Catalini, M. (Feb. 1, 2013). Manchin in the middle. NationalJournal.com. Retreieved Feb. 11,
2013 from http://www.nationaljournal.com/politics/joe-manchin-in-the-middle-20130131
Cwalina, W., Falkowski, A., & Newman, B. I. (2011). Political marketing: Theoretical and
strategic foundations. Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe.
Fink, B., Neave, N, Manning J.T. & Grammer, K. (2005). Facial symmetry and the “big-five”
personality factors. Personality and Individual Differences. 39(3), 523-529.
Global Strategy Group (2010) Joe Manchin for Senate-WV. (Case Study). Washington, DC:
GSG. Retrieved Feb. 11, 2013 from http://globalstrategygroup.com/case-studies/joe-
manchin-for-senate-wv/
Hohmann, J. and Bresnahan, J. (Jan. 27, 2013). Big breaks for Republicans, but road to Senate
still steep. Politico.com. Retrieved Feb. 11, 2013 from
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/01/senate-control-elections-2014-republicans-
86766.html
Klein, E. (Oct. 13, 2010). Joe Manchin and the liberal brand. The Washington Post [Online
Edition]. Retrieved Feb. 11, 2013 from http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-
klein/2010/10/manchin_draft.html
Keller, K. (2008). Strategic Brand Management (3rd ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Maarek, P. J. (2011). Campaign communication and political marketing. Malden, MA: Wiley-
Blackwell.
Minor, M. E. (Sept. 28, 2012). NEWS9 at Six. Steubenville, OH: WTOV9-TV, Inc..
Rhodes, G. and Zebrowitz, L. (2002). Facial Attractiveness – Evolutionary, Cognitive and Social
Perspectives. New York, NY: Ablex.
Wallace, J. (Nov. 7, 2012). The West Virginia Encyclopedia: Joe Manchin (Online Edition)
Retrieved Feb. 11, 2013 from http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/1484

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