In Defense of Negativity

by Geer, John G.

• ISBN13: 9780226284996
• ISBN10: 0226284999
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-04-01
• Publisher: Univ of Chicago Pr

Summary

Americans tend to see negative campaign ads as just that: negative. Pundits, journalists, voters, and scholars frequently complain that such ads undermine elections and even democratic government itself. But John G. Geer here takes the opposite stance, arguing that when political candidates attack each other, raising doubts about each other's views and qualifications, votersand the democratic processbenefit. In Defense of Negativity, Geer's study of negative advertising in presidential campaigns from 1960 to 2004, asserts that the proliferating attack ads are far more likely than positive ads to focus on salient political issues, rather than politicians' personal characteristics. Accordingly, the ads enrich the democratic process, providing voters with relevant and substantial information before they head to the polls. An important and timely contribution to American political discourse, In Defense of Negativity concludes that if we want campaigns to grapple with relevant issues and address real problems, negative ads just might be the solution.

Author Biography

John G. Geer is professor of political science at Vanderbilt University and the editor of the Journal of Politics, the editor of Politicians and Party Politics, and the author of Nominating Presidents: An Evaluation of Voters and Primaries and From Tea Leaves to Opinion Polls: Politicians, Information, and Leadership.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	xi
Acknowledgments	xiii
The Need for Negativity: An Introduction	1	(19)
Assessing Negativity	20	(22)
The Information Environment and Negativity	42	(22)
Evaluating Character Attacks	64	(21)
Evaluating the Content of Negative and Positive Issue Appeals	85	(26)
Dragging the Truth into the Gutter? The News Media, Negativity and the 1988 Campaign	111	(25)
Negativity, Democracy, and the Political System	136	(27)
Appendix	163	(4)
Notes	167	(18)
References	185	(10)
Index	195