Emotion in Political Advertising

1
Emotion in Political Advertising

• David Tokarz
• FYS100 Negative Campagning

2
Emergence and Role of Emotion

• Pre 1960s focus on issue ads
• Tony Schwartz 1960s
• Ads should surface ideas voters already have
• Give direction by associating candidates with
  images, symbols and values
• Use music to influence.
• (Play Ashamed, Upton-Washington, Chicago
  Mayoral, 1983)

3
What do we know about Emotion?

• Not much.
• Consultants have intuitions about emotion, but
  not much else
• Fear works
• Scares people, offers them safer alternative
• (play Collision, NY Road Bond Issue, 1966,
  Helms Ad 14, Helms vs. Gantt, 1990 NC Senate)
• Enthusiasm works
• People become invigorated
• More enthusiastic about candidate X, more likely
  to vote for candidate X.
• (play Morning Again, Reagan-Mondale, president,
  1984)

4
Moods and Emotion

• Feelings of enthusiasm
• When candidate is doing well
• Generally related to positive mood- status quo
  good
• Feelings of fear/anxiety
• When world is going to hell
• Generally related to negative mood- change good
• Called Affective Intelligence
• Key to emotional ads

5
Affective Intelligence

• Relates to what we already know
• If feelings positive, why change?
• If feelings negative, why remain the same?
• Also relates directly to enthusiasm/fear spots
• These spots create this emotion.

6
Effects of Enthusiasm -Brader

• Enthusiasm stokes interest, but not inquisitive
  behavior.
• Subjects who prefer the candidate increase by
  sixteen percentage points when positive frames
  are shown with enthusiasm cues
• Does not persuade undecideds or people committed
  to another candidate.
• Conclusion wrap positive ads with enthusiasm
  triggers.

7
Effects of Fear -Brader

• Does not increase interest in campaign, but
  dramatically affect people who seek out news
  regarding the issue portrayed in the ad
• Dramatically more effective at persuasion 1 in 4
  indifferent/opposition voters willing to support
  person who runs fear ad.
• Packaging a negative message with fear is very
  beneficial.

8
Conclusion

• Images and music do influence voters.
• Ads being run depend on the emotion a candidate
  wishes to evoke and his/her position in the polls