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American Studies
The New Deal Infomercial (40 points)
Introduction
Over the past several weeks, you have learned about the root causes of the crash of 1929, the beginning of The
Great Depression, and most importantly, the personal suffering that this economic catastrophe caused for
millions of Americans from all walks of life. You’ve also been introduced to the new President, Franklin Delano
Roosevelt, who inspired hope in the depths of despair, promising an experimental, hands-on approach to
helping the American people. Never before had a President used the federal government in such a direct and
expansive way. His program of action and reform became known as the New Deal.
Basically, every New Deal program or agency did at least one of these three things: the “3 R’s of the New Deal:”
A. Relief: immediate help for the unemployed; putting people to work
B. Reform: laws, regulations, and agencies to improve the banking system and the economy to prevent
a future Depression.
C. Recovery: “priming the pump:” federal spending to stimulate the economy (based on the economic
theories of John Maynard Keynes, the British economist who believed that deficit spending during
recessions and depressions could revive national economies.
The New Deal had two distinct phases: the first New Deal and the second New Deal.
A. 1st (1933-34): Immediate help and bold experimentation in the first 100 days; short term emergency
help.
B. 2nd (1935-38): A more ambitious and dramatic set of programs: public works, assistance to the rural
poor, support for unions, social welfare, benefits for older Americans and other groups, stricter business
regulation, higher taxes; aimed at long-term reform and restructuring.
Since so many of the New Deal agencies and programs FDR created had acronyms, they became known as the
“alphabet soup” agencies.
FDR’s New Deal faced attacks from both sides of the political spectrum. Conservatives thought he went too far
in expanding the role of the federal government, while left-wing radicals thought that he didn’t go far enough
toward using government to create a more equitable society. Despite the intense controversy, one thing is
clear: the New Deal did NOT succeed in entirely ending the Great Depression. The problems of
unemployment and economic stagnation continued throughout the 1930s, and only truly ended when the nation
began to prepare for World War II. However, his actions brought stability and a sense of hope back to a
despondent and downtrodden nation.
Task
FDR was an excellent “salesman” for his New Deal programs, through the use of his fireside chats on radio
(listen here: http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/fdrfirstfiresidechat.html , as well as newsreels and other
forms of media. But, imagine for a moment that the Roosevelt administration had the power of the
modern infomercial at their disposal. How would the New Deal have been marketed to the American
public?
If you are unfamiliar with what an infomercial is, well, then you’ve never sat home sick on the couch during the
day or stayed up really late watching TV. For some examples of the techniques and structure of modern
infomercials, see below:
o http://www.asseenontvvideo.com/Billy-Mays.html
o http://chicago.metromix.com/movies/article/top-ten-infomercials/941107/content
o http://www.top100lists.net/popculture/top-10-infomercials-of-all-time.html
o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xZp-GLMMJ0 (the Snuggie commercial)
You will work with a small group (4-5 students) to research a small set of FDR’s New Deal programs centered
around helping a specific group of Americans or addressing a specific sector of the economy. Then, you will
create your own short infomercial for FDR’s New Deal. Each group should have one of each:
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A confident, outrageous performer who is not camera-shy.
A skillful iMovie expert.
A diligent researcher and fact-checker.
A creative and witty writer.
Note: If you would prefer to create a similar type of presentation without video (i.e. in person as a skit, or
using Comic Life and making it into a comic strip), feel free to do so- just let us know.
Groups
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4.
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6.
7.
8.
farmers living in a rural area (A/B)
unemployed workers living in a city (A/B)
businessmen/industrialists
elderly/disabled people
unemployed artists/actors/musicians/performers
stock market investors who were wiped out in the crash
banking customers who have lost faith in the banking system
struggling homeowners
New Deal programs for each group
Use this section of the document to take extensive and detailed notes on each program/law for your section.
Farmer A
 TVA: Tennessee Valley Authority
 Farm Credit Administration
 Federal Crop Insurance Corporation
 Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act
Farmer B
 Rural Electrification Administration
 Resettlement Administration
 Federal Farm Bankruptcy Act
 AAA: Agricultural Adjustment Administration
Unemployed worker A
 FERA: Federal Emergency Relief Administration
 CCC: Civilian Conservation Corps
 PWA: Public Works Administration
 CWA: Civil Works Administration
Unemployed Worker B
 WPA: Works Progress Administration
 Wagner Act
 National Labor Relations Board
 Fair Labor Standards Act
Businessman/industrialist
 NIRA/NRA
 National Planning Board
 Federal Trade Commission
Elderly/disabled person
 Social Security Act
Artist/Musician/Actor
 Federal Theater Project
 Federal Writers’ Project
 Federal Artists’ Project
 Federal Music Project
Stock market investor
 Federal Securities Act
 Truth in Securities Act
 Securities and Exchange Commission
Banking customer
 Bank holiday
 Emergency Banking Act
 Glass-Steagall Banking Act
 FDIC: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Struggling homeowner
 Home Owners’ Loan Act
 National Housing Act
 Federal Housing Administration
Suggested Sources
Use the suggested Media Center databases found below and the rest of the internet. Educate yourself on the
major New Deal programs that affected your group of people (also found below). Dig deep. To what extent did
FDR’s New Deal work for you? How effective were these programs? Look for specific statistics and facts.
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PV media center subscription services: ABC/CLIO, Britannica, Annals of American History
http://faculty.washington.edu/qtaylor/Courses/101_USH/new_deal.htm
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ma02/volpe/newdeal/timeline_text.html
http://www.wwcd.org/policy/US/newdeal.html
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1851.html
Grading (40 points)
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The impact of New Deal programs is explained thoroughly and persuasively
Specific New Deal programs are discussed accurately and in great detail
Special attention to the conventions of infomercials: splashy graphics, loud/dramatic voiceovers, “in your
face attitude,” “too good to be true” presentation, etc.
Well-edited and error-free
Quicktime video file submitted