This article has been posted to DoctorZin’s New News Blog!
Posted on 08/14/2004 3:04:43 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
FLEMINGTON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 13, 2004--A video released last week by the Swift Boat Veterans For Truth (www.swiftvets.com), an organization aiming to refute John Kerry's Vietnam war record, has drawn the attention and skepticism of independent voters.
As reported on the website ReadMyLipz.com, the Swift Boat video, featuring outspoken Vietnam veterans claiming that Kerry has been untruthful about his Vietnam service, was successful in drawing the attention of non-affiliated voters. In fact, 6 out of 10 independents who viewed the video reacted with suspicion and skepticism.
During an on-line poll of more than 1,200 pre-selected nation-wide voters - Republicans, Democrats and Independents - each were asked to respond on a sliding scale for interest and believability to what is said and shown in the video.
While viewed with doubt by a solid majority of independent voters, the video also appears to have an effect on placing doubt in the minds of independent voters that are leaning towards Kerry in the November election. More specifically, 27% of independents who either planned to vote, or were leaning toward voting for Kerry, indicated that they were no longer sure of voting for him after watching the video.
Dr. Chris Borick, Director of the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion, indicated that "given the tight nature of this year's race for the White House, any advertisement that can cast doubt about a candidate is important." He contends, "While most independents in our study treated the ad with skepticism, it does appear to weaken some of Kerry's support among the crucial set of voters who are not affiliated with the Democratic or Republican Parties."
One surprise was the advertisement's weak effect upon Independents intending to vote for Bush. Among this segment, only 1.52% felt that they were less likely to vote for the President after watching the video. This is contrary to past advertising research, which has demonstrated that negative advertisements tend to push viewers away from both the candidate being attacked and the candidate doing the attacking.
"It was clear to us that this video was going to have an impact on voters," said Glenn Kessler, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, HCD Research. "Obviously the Swift Boat Veterans' intent was to publicly question Kerry's war record, and it looks like they succeeded."
"Organizations such as the Swift Boat Veterans For Truth may still accept 'soft money' donations under new campaign finance laws, therefore they don't have to play by the same rules as the candidates," explained Kessler. "Our objective is to measure whether the message is positive or negative toward either candidate," Kessler noted.
Additional testing is being conducted on a weekly basis through the November election. This is the first time a quantitative analysis of this type has been performed for political advertising.
ReadMyLipz.com was developed by HCD Research in conjunction with the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion (MCIPO) and Emmy Award-winning Network Television Producer Stu Kreisman. Headquartered in Flemington, New Jersey, HCD Research is a pioneer in Internet health care marketing and advertising research. Headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania, MCIPO is a respected source of public opinion data on local, state and national issues. Kreisman is a writer/producer best known for his work on popular network television series such as Cheers, Night Court, Newhart and SCTV. For more information or to share your views on current campaign political advertising, access www.readmylipz.com.
The advertising study was conducted by ReadMyLipz.com, a joint project by HCD Research and Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion (MCIPO) that aims to track public sentiment regarding campaign advertising. The 1,275 participants, 371 of whom were Independents, were asked to watch an advertisement supporting one of the two major candidates and to give feedback using a variety of methods, including real-time interest and believability tracking and the Ayer Emotional Battery. Complete information on survey methodology can be found at www.ReadMyLipz.com.
I was a lefty then.
I marvel at so many who are unreconstructed still.
Thank you CaraM.
The man certainly makes a bad impression.
That's the catch- a failure to grow, and, if I may be blunt, grow up. I started as a Goldwater supporter, and went through a sort-of liberal phase as a young man- but getting married, and having responsibilities cured me of any leftwing leanings.
The article misses the real significance of the study: If you go to the website for the original study:
http://readmylipz.com/pdf/SwiftBoatStudy.pdf
you see on pages 16-17 how effective the ad is in turning-around Democrats who FAVOR Kerry. It cut the number leaning toward Kerry by over 50%.
This is important stuff!
Yeah....responsibilities do that although folks who make it easy sometimes don't change either....like entertainers and athletes.
I was always more conservative than I realized inside being a 7th generation Mississippi WASP but after seeing the world by 23, the deal was done....Righty forever.
Good point. We really DO need to be supporting them. I wish they would run this ad in other states.
Here's and online PDF viewer:
Punch in a PDF url HERE and you can read PDF files online without a download.
Individual contributions would be "hard money", and therefore, they could run the ad outside of the 30/60 day rule if they have the funds to do that.
Well, I married a self-described "New Deal Democrat" who was, until that near-death experience in 2001, a professional musician... and it made for some interesting dialogues, debates, and diatribes around the Backhoe household.
I always had certain things in my favor, however- my wife's family were small business people, and so was she for a time in the Eighties, so she knew there was no such thing as a free ride or "free" stuff from the government. And she always had a clear concept of right versus wrong, and the importance of honesty and truth. I usually finished any disputes ( and they were really few, and not rancorous ) with, "You know, you are more conservative than you realize..."
She finally registered to vote this year- as a Republican. Surprised me, truth be told.
But of course it's having an impact on Independent voters. You only have to see how viciously the Dems are attacking the Swiftboat Vets to know it is having an impact.
Bump.
Just made a donation. As a Viet Nam vet, I am glad to stand by my brave brothers.
Agreed. Anyone who doesn't doubt how divisive Vietnam was and is in this country only has to note that the site of the Kent State deaths is now a parking garage. There's a placque to indicate events, but that's it. Now who would want to bury that memory so much that it be made a place to park? Hmmmmm.
God bless, neighbor- I suspect SBV is getting more than they hoped for-- I saw something about how much more they had collected than anticipated, but didn't save the info.
The American people were propagandized into giving up on the war effort. The losses upon our withdrawal were staggering -- that was not prominently aired either.
I'm no fan of having the US try to "fix" every evil in the world, but we damn sure shouldn't start something and not finish it.
Good God! Somehow, that had escaped my attention, and it's very telling. Our oldest niece was born in 1984, and the Vietnam War is as distant to her as WWII or Korea- it's like it's from another planet. If you didn't experience the division of this country back then first-hand, it is nearly impossible to convey.
The Tet Offensive was what truly opened my eyes to how bad the media had become in this country- the impression I got from TV and the press was that it was a resounding blow against America-- then I started reading the books that came out not long after, and saw that the North Vietnamese were the ones defeated. But that was not the story America was told, and the spin stuck.
Excellent point. I just see red when I read the lies and distortions.
GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR..........
But you've brought my bp down a bit. Thanks.
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