Negative Political Ads Affect Your Brain Instantly

This is a very interesting article I found on the MSNBC website that points out how negative political TV ads really do turn people against their candidate. This is scary. If this stuff works like they say it does, then are we really able to think freely when watching TV? How much control does the media really have over us?

Source: www.msnbc.msn.com...

This is your brain on negative ads
Researchers say we may not like them, but they sure are affective

The grainy black-and-white images appear on television, while ominous music plays in the background. It's another in a blizzard of negative political ads and before you consciously know it, the message takes hold of your brain.

You may not want it to, but it works just about instantly.

In fact, the ad's effects on the brain "are actually shocking," says UCLA psychiatry professor Dr. Marco Iacoboni.

Iacoboni's brain imaging research from the 2004 presidential campaign revealed that viewers lost empathy for their own candidate once he was attacked.

"Everyone says, 'We hate them, they're terrible,'" said psychology professor George Bizer of Union College in Schenectady, N.Y.

However, he added, "They seem to work."

And politicians know it because the latest figures show that by nearly a 10-to-1 ratio, political parties are spending more money on negative ads than positive ones.

This is falsified information. Your opinion does not change instantly when watching these types of adds. What MSNBC is trying to do is enable all of their attack ads to be effective when broadcast.

If you think/know that your opinion of someone will change when watching a political ad, then of course it will. They are trying to use some sort of strange psychology by saying that political ads do work and then backing it up by some brain scan.

Like saying, YOU WILL BE BRAINWASHED WHILE WATCHING THIS!

While in reality it doesn't.

But then they release a statement/study that says they do brainwash.

People read this and assume that it does and allow it to even tho it never had that power until they announced that it had that power.

(How do you like that for conspiracy) Lol

I really don't think it's as great a change as they claim.

Yes, negative political ads will efect those who are simply ignorant
about the whole thing, or don't know everything about their candi-
dates of choice, but to say that we "instantly lose empathy" for our
candidates is a complete fallacy.

Negative campaign adds don't effect me, apart from me disliking
the party and/or person who is creating them.


MSNBC should be ashamed for claiming such ignorance as truth.

I am voting against some candidates strictly on the basis of their negative ad campaigns.

I voted against Bill Richardson last time because he came out of the gate with negative ads against his opponent and gave the opponent a hefty donation.

This year I can't afford the hefty donation, but I wll vote against Richardson, because he is an arrogant horses ass who refuses to engage his opponent, at all.

Maybe I'm different, but negative ads piss me off and I vote against candidates who have have nothing else to say except bad things about their opponents.

If I had my way, there would be no mention of elections on television, at all.

No interviews, no ads, nothing except a televised debate with no commentary whatsoever.

[edit on 2006/11/4 by GradyPhilpott]

I'm with Grady, although I have no problems with Ads of the election.

However, emphasis should be on the candidates running their own race. Negative Ads directed towards the opponent is childish in my opinion. I don't consider them having a huge impact on the viewer, but I would agree that some are influenced by it.

Unfortunate really.

Originally posted by GradyPhilpott


If I had my way, there would be no mention of elections on television, at all.

No interviews, no ads, nothing except a televised debate with no commentary whatsoever.

[edit on 2006/11/4 by GradyPhilpott]

Hear! Hear! Grady, I totally agree with you on that!

I have my own opinion about political leaders and negative campaign adds have little affect on me, but if I saw irrefutable evidence of something factual I'd attack someone then. Say I saw an add, with music, I'd think it was another negative add, I'd know that by then, and then I'd make sure that it wasnt really bothering me but if I see ads like the ones they explained I dont think that they would affect the way that I think.

Seriously, when you see a negative ad about a candidate do you go like "Omgwtfnegativead"? It all comes to a matter of what your personal opinion on your candidate is. It's not like the other side will change your opinion on who you are voting for.

In actuality, if I was voting for someone and I saw a negative add about that person I'd say that ad is full of ****.