1. Evaluating Political Ads

2. What are they good for? Communicate candidates message
Persuade people to vote for them
Entertain the people
Can target general or specific audiences
Make the candidate look good
Make the other guy/girl look bad

3. Lets suppose we are selling a new candy bar
Who is your audience?
What do you want people to think about your product?
What type of arguments could you make about your product and how could you support these arguments?
How do you want people to feel about your product?
How would you want people to feel about competitors?
What sounds, songs, images would you use in your ads?

4. This is essentially what the candidate and their staff must do
The must sell themselves to the American people
Some people have limited or biased knowledge of the candidates
How do they do this?
Play on emotion
Use persuasion
Appeal to the truth / “truth”
Use of Style

5. Emotion
Create a tone, play off of current hot button issues to swing a voter
Appeal to the “American Dream”
Know who your audience is, how you will reach them, and be specific about their needs

6. Lets look at some ads
“Prouder, Stronger, Better” (Reagan, 1984) prouder-stronger-better
“Celeb” (McCain, 2008) celeb
“Taxes” (Nixon, 1960) taxes

7. Persuasion Appeal to the issues and how tough you will be
Convince people you are the one for the job
Make the other person seem like they are not
Make an argument…hopefully convincingly

8. Lets look at some ads
“McGovern Defense” (Nixon, 1972) /mcgovern-defense
“Accountability” (Gore, 2000) /accountability
“Voting Booth” (McGovern, 1972) /voting-booth

9. Truth or “Truth”
State facts about what has happened while you are in office
Make general facts and specific
Hide or don’t mention the ones that hurt you

10. Lets look at some ads
“Accomplishment” (Clinton, 1996) /accomplishment
“Rebuild America” (Clinton, 1992) /rebuild-america
“Wolverine” (Bush, 1992) /wolverine

11. Style How do we make the ads stick in peoples memory
Is this ad fun? Something people will talk about?
You maybe an old dude that people do not think is capable of having fun…you will show them

12. Lets look at some ads
“Wind Surfing” (Bush, 2004) /windsurfing
“Roller Coaster” (Mondale, 1984) /rollercoaster
“Senator Margaret Chase” (Goldwater, 1964) /senator-margaret-chase