In the surplus of political advertisements that surface around the election, candidates and their teams use different mechanisms and mediums to polish and deliver their messages.
Campaigns are a form of marketing. The goal is to convince voters that the candidate’s message is worth investing in, whether through donations, endorsements or a vote.
As Wichita State political science student Ryan Nuckles put it, the purpose of the advertisement is not to convince the voter, but rather, “to get their voters to go vote.”
“And I mean, like a whole army of people just doing your campaign work,” Nuckles said. “There’s scarcely a word that’s said by either candidate that they don’t want you to hear.”
The engagement from the audience plays a role in the process of crafting an advertisement. According to James Ian Tennant, an assistant communications professor, ads might be created to target specific groups of people.
“It depends on the person, depends on the context,” Tennant said. “If you’re exposed to a certain amount of media, it probably has an impact, depending on … your education too.”
Creating a candidate’s ‘brand’
The way news is received has adapted to what mediums people are using. Creating a brand means building a platform that people identify with. Brands can be built around the candidate’s values, politics and relatability.
Candidates can have very different ways of reaching out to their audience. For example, Kamala Harris’ campaign largely advertises through TikTok. Nuckles said Harris has created a specific brand appeal to voters.
“She kind of cultivates this air of girl boss — girl bossiness,” he said. “And she said like, ‘Brat’ over the summer or something, and then that became a thing.”
Former President Donald Trump, meanwhile, portrays himself in advertisements as a patriot. Trump’s advertisements have a strong focus on the failures of President Joe Biden, which resonates with many voters who identify as Republican.
“It’s not a new political strategy,” Tennant said. “A Democratic candidate running against any incumbent Republican would probably do the same … In the sense (of), ‘America’s in a hell of a mess, and only I can fix it.’”
Thinking critically about political ads
With the election around the corner, advertisements are popping up more frequently. Tennant and Nuckles both said it’s important to do research, think critically about the candidate and question what you don’t know.
Nuckles said students should use trusted sources to research candidates. He suggested Ballotpedia, a website that aims to simplify political information.
“They have a lot (of information) for a lot of the candidates,” Nuckles said.
Tennant said it’s also important to understand a variety of perspectives.
“What’s important is to try to branch out, you know, maybe consume some media that you wouldn’t necessarily look into,” Tennant said. “If you’re a CNN viewer, then go watch Fox News for a while, just to see.”
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