As we are getting closer and closer to the midterm elections, the negative political ads are airing more and more. This week we are learning about the principles that are used in political advertising, which are stereotyping, association, demonetization and code words . The one that has been most prevalent in Georgia has been association. The association principle links a candidate to an unpopular cause or other person.
As the image above portrays, the majority of the attack ads have been aimed at associating Michelle Nunn with President Obama and the Affordable Healthcare Act. This has been the main ammunition used by the Perdue campaign and even more so with ads sponsored by Pacs. Recently I was at the gym, and decided to count the number of times that ads such these were aired. In a span of one hour on CBS, there were a total of attacks ran that associated Nunn with President Obama and the Affordable Healthcare Act. Each ad ran for about 30 seconds, which meant that a total of nine and a half minutes of a one hour newscast featured negative ads.
That is not to say that the attack ads were one sided. The Nunn campaign and supporting Pacs also bought airtime to run their negative ads. In that same one hour span, there were a total of 9. So in total, in a one hour newscast, a total of fourteen minutes was dedicated to negative ads. Personally, I think that enough is enough! This a prime example of how politics has become so polarizing. Like many, I am tired of all the negativity that has plagued every election that I have been eligible to vote in. It decreases my motivation to even get out and vote. I am confident that I am not alone in this, and strongly feel that going forward this aspect of campaigning has to change in order to avoid further citizen alienation.
Check out the ads below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKVTXXqk_LQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTHlO7HSkLU
Check out the ads below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKVTXXqk_LQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTHlO7HSkLU
I am with you! I am so tired of seeing all these negative ads! I don't pay attention to the ads, and they are really annoying. I think our country relies so heavily on pointing the finger instead of talking about ourselves. Instead of talking about how they will help our state, politicians talk about how terrible the other person is! Showing you are different from them and you think your policies are better is one thing, but these ads get really personal! I agree that all these negative attacks need to stop!
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree with you, negative ads are also far more likely to get people to vote. As the old quote goes "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Lets face it, there aren't that many dedicated people out there who support either candidate. So, if people aren't really that supportive of a candidate, how will they get them to vote? By trying to get them to vote against the other guy more than for themselves. Voting is just like posting a review online, people are far more likely to do it if they are angry than happy.
ReplyDeleteEveryone complains about negative ads and low voter turn out, but I think that if there were no negative ads then voter turn out would be even lower.
Christopher, I love your post and I also agree with you. Indeed, Michelle Nunn is definitely being "associated" with President Obama although she is her own person, has her own beliefs and values. This negative attack is always a tactic being used to force the voters hand to vote aganist the "other guy." I desire to seek political office within the next 3-4 years, and I determined to stick to the issues, and the problems we face within our state and nation. I will do my level best to avoid negativity and restore civility and respect, that have been long gone from the political arena.
ReplyDelete