Taking aim at attack advertising - Softcover

Fridkin; Kenney

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0190947578 ISBN 13: 9780190947576

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2019

Synopsis

Negative campaigning is a central component of political campaigns in the United States. Yet, until now, most evidence has suggested that negative campaigning has little effect on voters. How can we reconcile the findings of a plethora of empirical studies with the methods of political elites? This book cuts through to the central issue: how such advertising influences voters' attitudes and their actions during campaigns. Focusing on U.S. senatorial campaigns, Kim Fridkin and Patrick Kenney draw from surveys, experiments, facial expression emotion tests, content analyses, and focus groups. They develop the "tolerance and tactics theory of negativity" and demonstrate the divergent effects of tone and content on voter outcomes. Using their new framework, they find that harsh messages seen as relevant to the opponent's ability to govern are indeed likely to be noticed and acted upon.

About this title

About the Author

Kim L. Fridkin is a Foundation Professor of Politics and Global Studies at Arizona State University, where she has taught since 1989. She is an expert in the areas of women and politics, campaigns and elections, and U.S. voting behavior. She is the author of The Political Consequences of Being a Woman and has co-authored The Changing Face of Representation: The Gender of U.S. Senators and Constituent Communications, No Holds Barred: Negative Campaigning in the U.S. Senate, and The Spectacle of U.S. Senate Campaigns with Patrick J. Kenney.

Patrick J. Kenney is Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and a Foundation Professor of Politics and Global Studies at Arizona State University, where he has taught since 1986. He is an expert on campaigns, elections, and U.S. voting behavior.

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2019
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0190947578
• ISBN 13: 9780190947576
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 264