Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Book Review: The Victory Lab


Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: Crown; 1st Edition edition (September 11, 2012)

The Victory Lab was written by Sasha Issenberg, a columnist for Slate.  It does to presidential elections what Moneyball did for baseball.  Issenberg is a rising star in the political press corps and brings a whole new meaning to the science of winning elections.

Elections at all levels have gotten more expensive than before.  There's no justification for this.  Outside of inflation, of course, but that goes without saying!

Issenberg focuses in on those that have reshaped the political campaign landscape:  strategists, statisticians, academics and maverick operatives.  Without a doubt, he reshapes how such campaigns are won and lost.

Issenberg gives us the insight on tactics and strategies that are being used for human-decision making, marketing, and campaign tactics.

He gives us the low down on who is playing crucial roles in next month's election:  Todd Rogers, Alexander Gage, Jeremy Bird, and Dan Wagner.

Politico describes it as "Moneyball for politics."  I agree 100%.  This book is not only skillfully written and energetically reported, it should be considered as essential reading for anyone that has an interest in politics, history, and the social science of how elections are won.

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