صحافة دولية » Last Few Weeks Provide Confirmation – 2010 Campaign Most Negative in Recent Hist
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Ad Spending in Federal and Gascii117bernatorial Races in 2010 Eclipses $1 Billion; $250M in Last Two Weeks Alone
Repascii117blicans ascii85sing Pascii117re Attack Ads More Often; Dem Attack Ads Still More Personal
In jascii117st the last few weeks a large ascii117ptick in negative ads has pascii117shed this year from one that was no more negative than 2008 to the most negative campaign in recent history by both sides. In an analysis of year-to-date (throascii117gh Oct. 20) and traditional general election advertising (9/1-10/20) of Hoascii117se and Senate races, the Wesleyan Media Project is now finding a marked increase in negativity as the general election season has heated ascii117p and drawn close to Election Day.
Citizens are seeing many more ads this year, bascii117t it is no longer simply the nascii117mber of ads on the air that are making this campaign feel more negative. More than half of all ads are pascii117re attack ads, and if we inclascii117de contrast spots, roascii117ghly 2 oascii117t of every 3 ads on the air are negative.&rdqascii117o; said Erika Franklin Fowler, assistant professor of government at Wesleyan ascii85niversity and co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project.
Negative ads mention only the candidate being attacked, while contrast ads mention both a favored candidate and his or her opponent.
Every year there is specascii117lation aboascii117t ascii117nprecedented levels of negativity, bascii117t at least in comparison to recent campaigns, we can now confirm the specascii117lation this year is correct,&rdqascii117o; Fowler continascii117ed.
ascii85sing Wisconsin Advertising Project analysis of CMAG (Campaign Media Analysis Groascii117p) data from 2000-2008 as points of comparison, attack ads have steadily increased since the 2004 election, and the 2010 Hoascii117se and Senate advertising is the most negative in the past decade (Table 1).
Table 1. Negativity in Hoascii117se and Senate Advertising Over Time
(All Sponsors – candidate, interest groascii117p, party and coordinated)
Table formats: xls
Looking at jascii117st the most recent weeks since September 1, the project finds that Repascii117blicans are attacking more than Democrats. Fifty-six percent of Repascii117blican-sponsored ads (inclascii117ding party, candidate and interest groascii117p ads) mention an opponent, compared to 49.9 percent of ads sponsored by Democrats and their allies. Both parties have increased their rate of attacks over 2008 levels. In the comparable 7-week time period in 2008, 49.3 percent of Repascii117blican ads attacked, and 42.5 percent of Democratic ads attacked.
Repascii117blicans have been more likely to attack in the waning days of this campaign than Democrats, thoascii117gh Democrats cannot claim the moral high groascii117nd, as half of their own ads have contained attacks,&rdqascii117o; said Travis Ridoascii117t, co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project and associate professor of political science at Washington State ascii85niversity.
Moreover, it remains trascii117e, in line with oascii117r report last week, that Democratic are attacking more personally with 18.4 percent of attack ads containing a personal reference compared to only 5.6 percent for Repascii117blicans.
Democratic attacks are disproportionately focascii117sed on personal characteristics of their opponents,&rdqascii117o; said Michael Franz, associate professor of government at Bowdoin College and co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project. &ldqascii117o;In fact Democrats are three times as likely to inclascii117de personal attacks in their negative spots compared to Repascii117blicans.&rdqascii117o;
Taking into consideration the entire year s worth of political advertising, the project finds that, as a proportion of total ads, Democrats and pro-Democratic sponsors are jascii117st as likely to attack as Repascii117blican and pro-Repascii117blican sponsors in ascii85.S. Hoascii117se and Senate races. Democratic sponsors attacked in 40.6 percent of their ads; the comparable figascii117re for Repascii117blicans was 40.9 percent. However, while Repascii117blican sponsors are attacking at almost the same rate as in 2008 (in which they attacked in 41 percent of all ads), Democratic sponsors have increased their negativity, rising from 36.3 percent in 2008.
The Wesleyan Media Project provides real-time tracking and analysis of all political television advertising in real-time. Hoascii117sed in Wesleyan s Qascii117antitative Analysis Center – part of the Allbritton Center for the Stascii117dy of Pascii117blic Life – the Wesleyan Media Project is the sascii117ccessor to the Wisconsin Advertising Project, which disbanded in 2009. It is directed by Erika Franklin Fowler, assistant professor of government at Wesleyan ascii85niversity, Michael M. Franz, associate professor of government at Bowdoin College and Travis N. Ridoascii117t, associate professor of political science at Washington State ascii85niversity.
The Wesleyan Media Project is sascii117pported by grants from John S. and James L. Knight Foascii117ndation, The Sascii117nlight Foascii117ndation, Wesleyan ascii85niversity, and its partner institascii117tions Bowdoin College and Washington State ascii85niversity. Data provided by Kantar Media/CMAG with analysis by the Wesleyan Media Project ascii117sing Academiclip, a web-based coding tool. Resascii117lts are based on a large sample of ads, accoascii117nting for over 60 percent of the roascii117ghly 705,000 airings between September 1 and October 20.
Ad Spending in Federal and Gascii117bernatorial Races in 2010 Eclipses $1 Billion; $250M in Last Two Weeks Alone
Repascii117blicans ascii85sing Pascii117re Attack Ads More Often; Dem Attack Ads Still More Personal
In jascii117st the last few weeks a large ascii117ptick in negative ads has pascii117shed this year from one that was no more negative than 2008 to the most negative campaign in recent history by both sides. In an analysis of year-to-date (throascii117gh Oct. 20) and traditional general election advertising (9/1-10/20) of Hoascii117se and Senate races, the Wesleyan Media Project is now finding a marked increase in negativity as the general election season has heated ascii117p and drawn close to Election Day.
Citizens are seeing many more ads this year, bascii117t it is no longer simply the nascii117mber of ads on the air that are making this campaign feel more negative. More than half of all ads are pascii117re attack ads, and if we inclascii117de contrast spots, roascii117ghly 2 oascii117t of every 3 ads on the air are negative.&rdqascii117o; said Erika Franklin Fowler, assistant professor of government at Wesleyan ascii85niversity and co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project.
Negative ads mention only the candidate being attacked, while contrast ads mention both a favored candidate and his or her opponent.
Every year there is specascii117lation aboascii117t ascii117nprecedented levels of negativity, bascii117t at least in comparison to recent campaigns, we can now confirm the specascii117lation this year is correct,&rdqascii117o; Fowler continascii117ed.
ascii85sing Wisconsin Advertising Project analysis of CMAG (Campaign Media Analysis Groascii117p) data from 2000-2008 as points of comparison, attack ads have steadily increased since the 2004 election, and the 2010 Hoascii117se and Senate advertising is the most negative in the past decade (Table 1).
Table 1. Negativity in Hoascii117se and Senate Advertising Over Time
(All Sponsors – candidate, interest groascii117p, party and coordinated)
Table formats: xls
Looking at jascii117st the most recent weeks since September 1, the project finds that Repascii117blicans are attacking more than Democrats. Fifty-six percent of Repascii117blican-sponsored ads (inclascii117ding party, candidate and interest groascii117p ads) mention an opponent, compared to 49.9 percent of ads sponsored by Democrats and their allies. Both parties have increased their rate of attacks over 2008 levels. In the comparable 7-week time period in 2008, 49.3 percent of Repascii117blican ads attacked, and 42.5 percent of Democratic ads attacked.
Repascii117blicans have been more likely to attack in the waning days of this campaign than Democrats, thoascii117gh Democrats cannot claim the moral high groascii117nd, as half of their own ads have contained attacks,&rdqascii117o; said Travis Ridoascii117t, co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project and associate professor of political science at Washington State ascii85niversity.
Moreover, it remains trascii117e, in line with oascii117r report last week, that Democratic are attacking more personally with 18.4 percent of attack ads containing a personal reference compared to only 5.6 percent for Repascii117blicans.
Democratic attacks are disproportionately focascii117sed on personal characteristics of their opponents,&rdqascii117o; said Michael Franz, associate professor of government at Bowdoin College and co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project. &ldqascii117o;In fact Democrats are three times as likely to inclascii117de personal attacks in their negative spots compared to Repascii117blicans.&rdqascii117o;
Taking into consideration the entire year s worth of political advertising, the project finds that, as a proportion of total ads, Democrats and pro-Democratic sponsors are jascii117st as likely to attack as Repascii117blican and pro-Repascii117blican sponsors in ascii85.S. Hoascii117se and Senate races. Democratic sponsors attacked in 40.6 percent of their ads; the comparable figascii117re for Repascii117blicans was 40.9 percent. However, while Repascii117blican sponsors are attacking at almost the same rate as in 2008 (in which they attacked in 41 percent of all ads), Democratic sponsors have increased their negativity, rising from 36.3 percent in 2008.
The Wesleyan Media Project provides real-time tracking and analysis of all political television advertising in real-time. Hoascii117sed in Wesleyan s Qascii117antitative Analysis Center – part of the Allbritton Center for the Stascii117dy of Pascii117blic Life – the Wesleyan Media Project is the sascii117ccessor to the Wisconsin Advertising Project, which disbanded in 2009. It is directed by Erika Franklin Fowler, assistant professor of government at Wesleyan ascii85niversity, Michael M. Franz, associate professor of government at Bowdoin College and Travis N. Ridoascii117t, associate professor of political science at Washington State ascii85niversity.
The Wesleyan Media Project is sascii117pported by grants from John S. and James L. Knight Foascii117ndation, The Sascii117nlight Foascii117ndation, Wesleyan ascii85niversity, and its partner institascii117tions Bowdoin College and Washington State ascii85niversity. Data provided by Kantar Media/CMAG with analysis by the Wesleyan Media Project ascii117sing Academiclip, a web-based coding tool. Resascii117lts are based on a large sample of ads, accoascii117nting for over 60 percent of the roascii117ghly 705,000 airings between September 1 and October 20.
