Ah, fall. The air is getting cooler, the leaves are changing color, the kids are picking out their Halloween costumes, and the politicians are slinging mud at each other. Wait, what? It may not be anyone's favorite part of campaign season, but attack ads have been part of the political landscape since modern democracy came to be. Many politicians use attack ads in attempts to define their opponent and highlight issues with their qualifications, ethics or character. Some voters may be turned off by negative ads and disengage from the election, and in some instances, backlash from an attack ad has hurt the campaign that released it. However, negative advertisements can also attract the most attention to the election and energize the electorate. Representative Joe Wilson and Rob Miller's campaigns both released negative advertisements within the past two weeks, and today I would like to look at those ads to see what kind of messages they want us to hear about each other.
This is the ad Rob Miller's campaign released two weeks ago, called “Says.” The ad plays off Wilson's campaign slogan “Joe Means Jobs,” pointing out ways in which Joe Wilson has voted to benefit himself and big business while taking jobs away from the district.
This is the ad released by Joe Wilson's campaign on Monday, titled "Rob Miller Job Killer." It links Rob Miller to the “job killing” policies of Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama, including the health care reform bill, and makes use of the fact that “Rob Miller” rhymes with “job killer.”
In my opinion, Rob Miller has the more effective ad. I particularly like that he used Representative Wilson's own slogan against him. Since so much of Wilson's campaign has focused on how his policies will create jobs, the ad is quite effective at undermining his credibility. Wilson's ad may also be effective, especially in this conservative district, because it links Miller to some unpopular politicians and policies. However, I find the rhyming technique childish and distasteful. Who cares what Rob Miller's name rhymes with? It reminds me of Rush Limbaugh insulting then-Senator Barack Obama by referring to him as “Osama Obama” and “Obama Osama.”
After viewing both commercials I would have to say Rob Millers’ negative campaign ad against Joe Wilson will be more effective. This is because he used the faces of regular people to relate to the voter. Miller makes it looks like Wilson is voting to take jobs away from these people or the voter specifically and more importantly he is selfishly giving himself raises while people are suffering.
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