The Art of Deception in Political Advertising

2019 ◽  
pp. 349-374
Author(s):  
Stella Amara Aririguzoh
Keyword(s):  
Presidential Election ◽  
Analytical Method ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Political Advertising ◽  
Television Advertising ◽  
Presidential Campaign ◽  
Election Campaigns ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Political Advertisements ◽  
Deceptive Advertising

Television advertising is a growing important aspect in presidential electoral campaigning. It accounts for a big part of the electioneering expenses. Presidential political advertisements are important sources of information to voters. Their messages may influence poll results. Using a content analytical method, this study examined 12 of the presidential campaign advertisements created for ex-president Goodluck Jonathan and his People's Democratic Party (PDP); and the opposition coalition flag bearer, Retired General Muhammadu Buhari and his All Progressives Congress during the 2015 Nigerian presidential election campaigns. The aim of this study was to identify the deceptions in these advertisements. This study found that both sides engaged in deceptive advertising. Buhari/APC engaged more in misinformation, lies, misrepresentation and spreading of unproven facts. Goodluck/PDP avoided misrepresentations and misinformation, but used lies, unproven assertions and pufferies. It is recommended that campaign advertisements be scrutinized before they are aired.

Critical sociocognitive analysis of hate speech in the 2015 Nigerian presidential election campaigns

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adesina B. Sunday
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Presidential Election ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Hate Speech ◽  
Presidential Campaign ◽  
Shared Knowledge ◽  
Election Campaigns

Abstract In an attempt to ensure electoral victory, politicians use different strategies. One of such is resort to hate speech to discredit the opponents. The 2015 presidential election campaigns in Nigeria witnessed unrestrained use of hate speech in different media. This paper analysed selected speeches of the campaign organisations of the two leading political parties in the election, namely the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation and the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Organisation. Data were got from the speeches and advertorials of the two organisations sampled from The Nation and The Punch, published between January and March 2015. The speeches were subjected to critical sociocognitive analysis. The antecedents of the candidates became a recipe for hate speech. Propagandist and alarmist ideologies were used. Socially shared knowledge played an important role in the hate speech. Figures were used symbolically and serious attempts were made to frighten the electorate.

scholarly journals The Need for an Established Senate Rule on Election-Year and Lame Duck Session Supreme Court Nominations

2021 ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Jacob Weaver
Keyword(s):  
Supreme Court ◽  
American History ◽  
Presidential Election ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Presidential Elections ◽  
Presidential Campaign ◽  
Look Back ◽  
History Of ◽  
Lame Duck ◽  
Explicit Rule

In 2016, the Republican-held Senate refused to hold a hearing on President Barack Obama’s nominee, Merrick Garland, sparking outrage among the Democratic Party. Then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell justified his party’s actions based on what became known as the “McConnell Rule.” This controversial rule holds that during years of presidential elections, when the president and the Senate majority are of different parties, the Senate is not expected to confirm the president’s Supreme Court nominees; but, when the president and Senate majority are of the same party, vacancies may be filled. When the Senate applied this rule in 2020, the stakes were even higher. Revered liberal stalwart Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away only 46 days before the 2020 presidential election. Invoking the McConnell Rule, the Republican-held Senate moved forward with the confirmation of President Trump’s nominee Amy Coney Barrett. This contentious move again infuriated Democrats, and the presidential campaign. Now that Justice Barrett has been appointed and the presidential election has passed, it is useful to look back on the history of Supreme Court nominations during presidential election years. Such a review suggests that the so-called McConnell Rule is rooted in valid historical precedent. In fact, viewed in light of American history, even a Trump lame duck nomination and confirmation would have been valid. This blog post argues that the Senate should distill this historical precedent into an explicit Rule of the Senate that will govern the chamber going forward. The rule should obligate the Senate to either (1) hold a vote to confirm the election-year or lame duck nominee, or (2) hold a vote to postpone action on the nomination. If a vote to postpone action on the nomination fails, the rule should then compel the Senate to hold a vote to confirm the nominee. Such a rule removes all doubt about the Senate’s authority to act or refuse to act on election-year and lame duck nominees, exposes unfounded threats of retaliation by minority parties, and best conforms to the Constitution.

The Impact of Political System and Culture on Political Advertising

2005 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chun-Sik Kim
Keyword(s):  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Presidential Election ◽  
Political System ◽  
Political Advertising ◽  
The United States ◽  
Election Campaigns ◽  
Daily Newspapers ◽  
Study Results ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The U.S

This study examines the impact of political system and culture on political advertising of the United States, Japan and Korea. The population of this study was defined as all political ads appearing in major daily newspapers during the 1963–1997 presidential election campaigns in the U.S. and Korea, and the House of Representatives' election campaigns in Japan. A total of 695 political newspaper ads were content-analyzed in this study. Results of the study showed that there were differences in types, valences and appeals of political advertising of the U.S., Japan and Korea. Also, discussions based on study results showed mixed and intertwined arguments against or for the expectations for this study.

scholarly journals Televised Political Advertisements

Communication ◽  
2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
William L. Benoit
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Political Action ◽  
Federal Funding ◽  
Political Advertising ◽  
The United States ◽  
Television Advertising ◽  
Complete Control ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Political Advertisements ◽  
Campaign Finance Law

The first political television advertisement was run by Senator Benton of Connecticut in 1950. The first presidential TV spots were broadcast two years later, when Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower defeated Democrat Adlai Stevenson. These messages have become an extremely important means of communication with voters, particularly for higher-level offices. Billions of dollars are spent on political advertising in America. Obama became the first candidate ever to decline federal funding for the general election campaign, which meant he could spend all he could raise; McCain accepted federal funding, which imposed limits on his spending. Television spots are important for several reasons. The candidate has complete control over the content of these messages; the news selects and often interprets information from candidates. Unlike ads, debates include opponents and candidates may face questions they would rather avoid. TV spots also allow targeting of messages by selecting which markets ads are broadcast in and which programs they are broadcast on. In presidential campaigns this is extremely important because candidates in recent campaigns focus advertising on the states which are “in play” (“battleground states”), states with electoral votes that could be won by either candidate. Although it is increasingly easy for citizens with little interest in the campaign to avoid exposure to political advertising (DVDs, the Internet, and most of cable and satellite TV, for example, do not include such messages), TV spots have the greatest chance of reaching voters who do not seek out information on the campaign. Furthermore, with today’s constantly increasing population, candidates running for offices such as senator and governor—and, in the early 21st century, increasingly for lower offices as well—cannot hope to reach a large proportion of constituents without using TV spots. Political groups, such as PACs (Political Action Committees) or 527s (named after a provision of a campaign finance law) also broadcast political advertisements in the United States. Although some countries have laws regulating the use of political television advertising, this message form is also becoming important in other countries besides the United States. Finally, as we will see below, there is no question that televised political advertising has effects on viewers.

The Myth of a Political Powerhouse: The National Education Association and Presidential Election Campaigns, 1972–2016

2020 ◽  
Vol 122 (9) ◽  
pp. 1-46
Author(s):  
Deeann Grove
Keyword(s):  
Presidential Election ◽  
Special Interest ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Research Question ◽  
National Education Association ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
Teacher Professionalism ◽  
Election Campaigns ◽  
National Education ◽  
Education Association

Background/Context During the 2016 presidential election campaign, Hillary Clinton was “booed” while speaking at the National Education Association (NEA)'s annual representative assembly. The media suggested this evidenced a weakening of a powerful alliance. Since the NEA first endorsed Jimmy Carter in 1976, the claim that the Democratic party is “a wholly owned subsidiary of the NEA” has persisted. This characterization of the NEA and Democratic Party relationship has become so ubiquitous in political discourse that it is rarely questioned. As a result, the NEA is often portrayed as a powerful political player in national elections, while little evidence supports this conclusion. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study This study uses archival evidence to identify the NEA's political influence during presidential election campaigns to provide scholars a more nuanced history as they seek to understand current political happenings. Research Design The historical analysis used internal campaign and NEA documents located in 13 archives housed in six presidential libraries, four university libraries, two state historical societies, and one public policy institute as well as the NEA Collection at The George Washington University. Findings/Results Two factors explain NEA's limited influence on presidential politics despite its significant donations to the Democratic Party. First, Republican candidates used the NEA to attack Democrats as beholden to radical special interest groups. Democrats evidenced the success of this Republican strategy by taking positions the NEA opposed in an attempt to convince voters of their independence. Second, many NEA members did not support the NEA's involvement in party politics because they believed political activism was inconsistent with teacher professionalism or they were conservatives unwilling to support a Democratic candidate. Conclusions/Recommendations As they look to future presidential campaigns, scholars should remember: 1) Republican candidates’ attacks on the NEA have been part of a strategy to convince voters that Democratic candidates were beholden to special interests. Policy differences between Republican candidates and the NEA served as later justification for this strategy rather that its cause. 2) Democratic candidates supporting policies the NEA opposes is not an act of political courage. They have long found the power of the NEA rests not in its endorsement but in the opportunity for voters to see them stand up to this special interest group. Given the NEA's commitment to endorsing a candidate and the Republican strategy, Democrats have been able to challenge the NEA without fearing that it will cost them an endorsement or campaign contributions.

scholarly journals Political Advertising in 2016: The Presidential Election as Outlier?

The Forum ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Erika Franklin Fowler ◽  
Travis N. Ridout ◽  
Michael M. Franz
Keyword(s):  
Presidential Election ◽  
Political Advertising ◽  
Presidential Campaign ◽  
The Other ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Message Strategy ◽  
Previous Cycle ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Media Project

AbstractThe 2016 presidential campaign broke the mold when it comes to patterns of political advertising. Using data from the Wesleyan Media Project, we show the race featured far less advertising than the previous cycle, a huge imbalance in the number of ads across candidates and one candidate who almost ignored discussions of policy. This departure from past patterns, however, was not replicated at the congressional level. We draw some lessons about advertising from the 2016 campaign, suggesting that its seeming lack of effectiveness may owe to the unusual nature of the presidential campaign with one unconventional candidate and the other using an unconventional message strategy, among other non-advertising related factors.

scholarly journals Music, Political Messaging, and Nigeria's 2015 Presidential Election

2019 ◽  
pp. 261-282 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stella Amara Aririguzoh
Keyword(s):  
Presidential Election ◽  
Analytical Method ◽  
The Political ◽  
Television Commercials ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
Communication Tools ◽  
Political Advertisements ◽  
Musical Space ◽  
Musical Genre ◽  
Musical Compositions

Music and songs command public attention and generally appeal to a large number of people. During the 2015 Nigerian presidential election, some politicians and their parties virtually took over the musical space to woo voters. The message creators for incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan and his challenger, Muhammadu Buhari, crafted music-laden television commercials to convey their manifestos. This chapter used a content analytical method to investigate how various pieces of musical compositions were used as communication tools in the television adverts used in the elections. Specifically, it examined the musical genre, words, context, message, and discourse. Overall, most of the political advertisements used in the election were built around music and songs in praise of the candidates or used to tarnish their image.

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