Political Campaign AdsProf. Bryan McQuide

POLS 110Module 4.7

Campaign Trivia

• Which Presidential candidate had whiskey bottles in the shape of log cabins made for him?• Warren G. Harding• Abraham Lincoln • Ulysses S. Grant• William Henry Harrison

• Philadelphia Distiller E.G. Booz put whiskey into cabin-shaped bottles for the 1840 campaign; Harrison was called the “log cabin and hard cider candidate” This is how “booze” became a part of our language.

Overview

We will be looking at the following:• Basic Terms• Types of Political Ads• How campaign ads can be manipulated• The effects of negative ads on voters• Is negative advertising really a new

thing?• How we can evaluate ads as citizens• Be sure to print out the Module 4.7

Exercise sheet from the Unit 4 page. You will be turning this in for the Unit 4.2 Exercise.

Election Campaign Ads: Why is it Important to Study Them?

In many campaigns, we see numerous ads accusing each other of failing to protect students, the

environment or taxpayers…

How do we know what to believe????

We will be looking at how to evaluate ads, the tricks political ad consultants use to make ads, and

how to identify the indentions behind the ads.

Basic Terms

Political advertising: advertising undertaken on by or on behalf of political candidates for the purpose of familiarizing voters with the candidate and his/her views on the issues. This can take the form of radio spots, TV ads, print ads, billboard ads, posters, yard signs, or Internet ads.

Attack Ad: a negative political ad that attacks the character of an opposing candidate

Types of Ads

The following are two main types of ads we see

Contrastive Ads• Discusses the issues• Contrasts stances of

both candidates• Used by campaigns

rather than independent groups

Negative Ads• Fails to discuss issues• Personally or political

based• Dark images, uses

advertising tricks• Takes votes,

comments out of context

• Often deceptive

Exercise 1: Identify That Ad!

• Identify the Ads shown as contrastive or negative ads on the Module 4.7 exercise sheet in Exercise 1

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Types of AdsThese are additional types of ads you may see during

election campaigns!

• Talking Head Ads: The candidate talks directly to the audience, telling voters what they believe and stand for.• Example: Rossi 2010

(click on the picture!)

• Documentary Ads: these ads are biographies of the candidates, telling voters about the candidate’s life, political experience. The intent is to familiarize voters with the candidate and make them seem like one of them—an ordinary American who grew up like them, went to college in their state, had children (these ads often contain pictures of the spouse, kids, dog/cat, etc.)

• Example: Clinton 1992 “Journey” Ad

Types of AdsThese are additional types of ads you may see during

election campaigns!

• Humor Ads: ads that are funny—the intent is to make the voter remember the ad (we tend to remember things that are funny• Example: RNC 1980 Ad

• Testimonial Ads: Someone else, such as the candidate’s wife or a celebrity speaks on behalf of the candidate.• Example: • (famous 1960 ad for JFK by Jacqueline Kennedy in

Spanish)

• Person on the Street Ads: these ads show “random” people on the street supporting the candidate. The intent is to show voters that the candidate has grassroots support from the mass public (but the reality is that these ads are not really random interviews with people on the street—they are staged!)

• Music Ad: campaign ads that use music to make voters feel good about the candidate. No real political issues or substance is shared with voters!

Types of AdsThese are additional types of ads you may see during

election campaigns!

Types of AdsThese are additional types of ads you may see during

election campaigns!

• Fear Ads: Ads designed to create fear, evoking emotional responses. Campaigns use these ads to instill fear of the other candidate in voters’ minds. These ads can be very effective.• Example: “3am Phone Call” 2008

• Backfire Ads: a candidate’s own words, images or actions are used in the ad to portray him/her as a flip-flopper, untrustworthy or unable to keep promises. These ads are remarkably effective by employing “self-incrimination strategies” to trap the opponent in their own words.• Example: “Fundamentals” 2008

Exercise 2: What Type of Ad is it?(Identify these ads in exercise 2 in the Module 4.7

exercise sheet)

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This is one of the most famous ads ever made!

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• Political Consultants create ads FOR the Candidate by:• Put flags in the background to make the

candidate look very patriotic and American• Add a lot of crowd cheering noise to the

background• Add a text graphic: “Make a Difference

Today” or “Joe Smith…Working for YOU”• Add upbeat, popular music to the clip to

make the candidate seem in touch with the people

• Picture the candidate with his/her family, kids, pets

• Associate the candidate with a popular, positive person or image—such as a popular President (i.e. Bill Clinton, Sen. Obama)

How Ads Can be Manipulated…

•AGAINST the Candidate:• Insert threatening music or depressing

sounds to the background• Make the ad black & white, grainy to make

the candidate look old and out of touch• Add a text graphic such as: “Can you really

trust him (her)?”• Use slow motion and strobing effects to

make the candidate look creepy• Associate the opponent with some notorious

person or image

How Ads Can be Manipulated…

Exercise 3: Identify That Ad Trick!(Exercise 3)

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What’s the Deal on Negative Ads?

• We tend to see more negative ads in very competitive races

• A 2002 Wisconsin advertising Project found that Congressional candidate ads tend to be more positive than those run by political parties and interest groups

Is this a recent phenomenon??

NO! We have always had negative ads and campaigns…Many Americans in recent years have complained about how negative campaign ads have gotten. On one hand, it is true that political campaigns have aired many negative ads. However, negative campaigning has always been around. It really is not a new phenomenon. In the 1796 presidential election between Federalist John Adams and Democratic-Republican Thomas Jefferson, both campaigns engaged in mudslinging one another. Adams accused Jefferson of being an atheist, sexually immoral, and having dangerous revolutionary ideas. In return, Jefferson accused Adams of wanting to establish a monarchy and crown himself king. Bad blood between politicians in that time turned violent in 1804. In 1804, political rivals Aaron Burr (Vice-President of the US under Jefferson) and Alexander Hamilton (Secretary of the Treasury under George Washington) engaged in a duel (Burr accused Hamilton of slandering him during the 1804 NY governor’s race which he lost, so Burr challenged Hamilton to a duel). Hamilton was killed in the duel (yes, a sitting Vice-President of the US killed a former Secretary of the Treasury!).

In 1804 campaign songs were printed in the newspapers—one such song was printed against Thomas Jefferson, set to the tune of Yankee doodle Dandy:

“When pressed by a load of state affairs, I seek to sport and dally, the sweetest solace of my cares is in the lap of Sally” (in reference to the alleged illicit relationship Jefferson had with one of his slaves, Sally Hemmings)

Opponents of Andrew Jackson in 1828 accused him of murder while Jackson’s supporters accused John Quincy Adams of having been a pimp for the Tsar of Russia while he was ambassador to Russia. In the 1840 presidential election campaign between William Harrison (Whig) and Martin Van Buren (Democrat), the Whigs painted Van Buren as an out of touch aristocrat. The 1864 election saw the Republican campaign equating opposition to Lincoln’s re-election and the Republican Party as disloyalty to the union and branding the Democrats as traitors. In 1868, the Democrats ran a negative campaign against Grant, calling him a drunkard, Negro-loving tyrant, unprincipled, and simple-minded. They ran slogans of "Grant the Butcher," "Grant the Drunkard," and "Grant the Speculator." Remember this was all before the television age, so the argument that has been put forth that TV advertising has lead to all this just doesn’t hold much water.

The 1884 election was one of the dirtiest in the 1800’s; slurs, scandal and slander characterized the campaign between Republican nominee James Blaine (President Chester Arthur failed to get his party’s renomination) and Democratic nominee Grover Cleveland. Cleveland’s campaign was marred by revelations that he had fathered an illegitimate child. The Republicans ran a campaign against Cleveland with a refrain: "Ma, Ma, Where’s My Pa? Gone to the White House, Ha, Ha, Ha.” The Republican negative campaign failed; Cleveland won the 1884 election. In 1928, Democrat Al Smith was maligned for being Catholic and a “wet” (anti-Prohibition) candidate. In the 1960 election, John F. Kennedy’s Catholicism spurred accusations that the Pope would move into the White House if he won the election and run the country (of course this never happened!).

Yes…• Negative ads have

been found to decrease turnout among independent voters

No..• Studies have found

negative ads often stir voter interest

• Political campaign ads educate voters on the issues, regardless whether they are positive or negative

• We tend to remember the most negative ads

Do Negative Ads Turn Off Voters?

Negative Ads and Elections

• Do negative ads turn off voters?• Studies have found conflicting results, but it

appears negative ads tend to mobilize partisan voters and depress turnout among independent voters

• Why do negative ads work? • Studies in recent elections found that when voters

see their candidate’s ads against the opponent, they feel more positively about their favorite. When voters see ads against their candidate, they are demobilized and are less likely to feel favorably, making it more likely they will stay home or simply not vote in that race on the ballot

What Effects DO Ads Have on Voters?

• Educates voters on the issues• Can help voters become interested in

the campaign• Might encourage us to go vote• Increases candidate name recognition

(very important in elections—many voters will mark the name on the ballot that they recognize)

• Helps us develop positive or negative feelings about the candidates

How Do We Evaluate Ads as Citizens? Is this a negative ad attacking the other candidate? If so,

then is the information about the other candidate correct? (Check the facts!) http://www.factcheck.org/

Is this an ad advocating what policies the candidate plans to support? If so, this is designed to get us as voters to vote prospectively.

• Who sponsored the ad? (Candidate’s campaign/Political Party/Interest Group?) • By law, ads must state who is sponsoring the ad—this is

why candidates will say, “I am so and so and I approve this message”—this way the voters know which candidate is supporting the ad. If the ad is by a political party or interest group, the ad will show this in the final clip—you will see a text on the bottom of the screen stating something like “Paid for by the Republican National Committee”

How Do We Evaluate Ads as Citizens?

• What kinds of images are used in the ad? For example, many ads are used with American flags and patriotic themes in them to stir images of national pride and unity (a popular theme now after the 9-11 attacks). These do not tell us much of anything substantive about their ideas or policies. They are more designed to stir our emotions.

•  Are loaded words and phrases used? Examples:• “He never met a tax increase he didn’t like” • “Tax & Spend” party• “They want to privatize your retirement

savings!”• “raise your taxes”

• How is the ad done? Does it look like it was manipulated with any of the “tricks of the trade”?

• What type of ad is this? Different types of ads are designed to create different voter reactions.

How Do We Evaluate Ads as Citizens?

Exercise 4: 2014 Iowa Election Campaign Ads (Exercise 4)

1 Iowa Democratic Party ad against GOP Senate candidate David Young (CLICK ON PICTURE)

MORE TO COME FROM BOTH PARTIES AS 2014 CAMPAIGNS HEAT UP IN IOWA!

What about Issue Ads??

• Issue ads tend to be more negative, one-sided and misleading than any campaign ads

• Why? Because these ads are run by independent interest groups who are interested in blocking or promoting policy changes and voters do not get to vote for or against them at the polls

• Over $200m spent in 2009 alone on health care reform issue ads

• These ads are unrestricted due to Supreme Court rulings in Buckley v. Valeo (1976) and Citizens United vs. FEC (2010)

Exercise 5: Issue Ads

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Identify the tricks used in these issue ads (Exercise 5)

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Finally…

• Submit your Exercise on the Assignments tab!

• Discuss campaign ads on the Discussion Board—what do you think of issue ads and negative campaign ads?