Tag: Campaign 2016

96 Percent of 2016 Campaign Ads Have Been Negative So Far

Buck Banks

96%

Of all TV ad occurrences captured by Kantar Media CMAG in the 2016 presidential race so far have been negative, according to Elizabeth Wilner of the Cook Political Report. “It’s based on a universe of 321 presidential occurrences on local broadcast and national cable as of April 9… Ultimately, 321 is 0.03% of the 1.15 million occurrences we tracked from start to finish in the 2008 race and 0.02% of the 1.43 million we tracked for 2012. But in the annals of preemie presidential advertising, the 4% stands in striking contrast in one respect. By this point in the 2008 and 2012 cycles, all the way-too-early ads that had aired… sought to build candidates up, not tear them down.”

Rand Paul’s Consistent Inconsistency Could Be an Asset

Buck Banks

As the press struggles to label him, Paul’s plunge into the primaries has the potential to upconvert his opponents. His value to Republicans is that his final position on a number of issues cannot be predicted from his past statements. This is valuable, and not a knock against him, because his unpredictability will force the rest of the field to respond in real time to a politician who seems willing to change his mind. … Paul can’t quite acknowledge his penchant for inconsistency, because there’s a convention in politics that equates consistency with strength. But it’s perhaps his most genuine quality.

— Marc Ambinder, in The Week.