Gracie Allen’s image repair episode, in the midst of her fictional presidential campaign, reflects how humor can both help and hurt image-building efforts.

Josh Compton

Popular radio star Gracie Allen was the target of criticism after her colleague told a joke referencing First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Allen responded to the criticisms with a public letter, employing a number of image repair strategies and tactics. In this analysis, Benoit’s image repair typology is used to study Allen’s political discourse. Her strategies are contrasted with more modern instances of political/humor image repair. Five implications are drawn, including issues of celebrity roles, the effectiveness of mortification during image repair efforts, and challenges and benefits of humor in an image repair situation.

Compton, J. (2014, April). Political humor on the radio, image repair, and Gracie Allen’s 1940 presidential campaign[paper presentation]. Eastern Communication Association, Providence, RI, United States.