Quote:
Originally Posted by dksuddeth
this is almost surreal. alot of people feel that this will permanently alter the foundation of our election system. Why is that?
are we at last brought to such mundane and ignorant status as to not be in control of our elections? If corporate corruption and influence determines who is elected, we the people are to blame for being too stupid to do anything different than listen to infomercials on who is the most popular candidate.
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I wouldn't underestimate the power and influence of advertising. Contrary to what people might think, we are affected by advertising on a deep psychological level. It is such that despite your sense of control or freedom or critical-thinking capacity, your choices are ultimately influenced by certain ads you consume. This is based on an ad's effectiveness in terms of its psychological penetration (ads feed on our fears and desires), in addition to reach, breadth, and frequency.
What this means is that those with the most money to pay for advertising tend to be most influential in terms of getting their messages embedded in our minds whether we want it there or not, whether you agree with it or not.
As an example, I would wager a guess that McDonald's and the Coca-Cola Company have had a far bigger impact on you than the corner mom-n-pop pizza place and the independent ice-cream shop next door. Much of that has to do with the weight of their messages, in addition to the reach, breadth, and frequency of their messages. This example is rather mundane because it involves food and drink, rather than political messages, but you get the idea.
Our choices, no matter how free and empowered we may think they are, are greatly influenced by advertising, which has become highly sophisticated over the years to the point where it's become rather frightening, really.
An adequately funded and planned advertising strategy can send ripples throughout the world, but its real impact operates under the radar.