I’m 72 and don’t consider myself to be ignorant regarding politics and voting.
Why the hell do the political parties constantly push for citizens to donate money for their coffers? People ignore the expensive TV ads after seeing it ONE time.
My landline phone rings about every 20 minutes for around 8 hours a day now. They are just robo calls pushing for candidates and donations. .....I haven’t answered my phone in a couple of months, as my friends and family know that I wont.
People like Karl Rove and others of his ilk, regardless of party, are old school and think that throwing money at ads will garner votes. They are full of it!!
I believe that, other than the LIVs who like gimmedats and don’t even keep up with who is even in politics (except a black man), people who take the trouble to vote will vote for whomever they want regardless of costly advertizing.
The only folks who gain in this game are the PACs, the people who produce the ads and the people who air the ads.
The only folks who gain in this game are the PACs, the people who produce the ads and the people who air the ads.
***
Well said! And so true.
Candidates do need to get their name out there, though. But, IMO, it is much cheaper and more effective to send mailers. I do not, however, mean the mailers that are 4 pages long and ask for donations.
Lay out the candidates vision succinctly and include the website URL. On the website there can be an obvious button for those who wish to donate.
The amount of money that is spent on political campaigns is obscenely wasteful.
Actually, the people who matter don’t ignore the TV ads. But the people who matter don’t actually need to be swayed to one side or the other.
In many races the TV ads are designed to create and reinforce the notion that a candidate the viewer already supports is fighting and waging a successful campaign.
Look at the recent Grimes shotgun ad in KY. She’s not persuading anyone to cross over from supporting McConnell to voting for her. She’s motivating her own supporters to vote by taking swipes at someone they already dislike. It counters the perception that she’s not fighting, and/or already knows she’s going to lose. Perceptions that will demoralize her supporters and depress her election day turnout efforts.
So the ads aren’t designed to drive voter decision, but rather voter turnout.