Why+Is+Mudslinging+Apart+Of+An+Election

Research Question: Is “mudslinging” an effective method of advertising in a presidential election and why is negative political advertising a tradition in a presidential race? Research Methods: Online and Library Research: I will be researching a lot on what many experts have to say about the mudslinging and attack your opponent in a presidential election. I will also be researching the origins of mudslinging, as well as why it is such an acceptable method in a presidential race. I will also be researching the effectiveness of mudslinging. Here are a couple of books with information on mudslinging and Mitchell, Jack. //How to Get Elected: An Anecdotal History of Mudslinging, Backstabbing, Vote-Stealing, and Red-Baiting//. New York,NY: St. Martin's Press, 1992. 1-221. Print. Scher, Richard K. //The modern political campaign: mudslinging, bombast, and the vitality of American politics//. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 1997. Print. Interviewing and Observation: I will be viewing videos of expert’s opinions on mudslinging from the 2008 election and other presidential elections. I will also be watching examples of mudslinging from previous elections. Content Analysis: I will be the origin of mudslinging in presidential elections and what exactly it means. Research Proposal: The presidential election is a competition for one of the highest positions in the world. The candidate have to convince an enormous number of people across the U.S. to support his campaign and that his opponent does not deserve to win, but presidential campaigns soon becomes a race in which winning is at any cost. This is when the presidential campaign becomes a smear campaign, in which the truth and lies soon blend together to the point that voters do not know what to believe. But does mudslinging really help a candidate’s cause or does it degrades the most important decision a citizen while ever have to make. When an opponent is attacked, a lot of lies are spread and the truth is exaggerated. Mudslinging is an important topic because the president is a very serious role. This person will be ensuring the welfare and satisfaction of millions of people. Upon viewing a video on mudslinging in the 2008 election, the reason behind mudslinging was stated as revealing as much information as possible about the candidate for this powerful position. I agreed with this statement, but I believe with mudslinging the truth is overshadowed by lies in an attempt to manipulate the voter’s decision. When something about a candidate is said and the voter doesn’t know what the term means, the voter will consider the term as a negative trait, which manipulates the voter’s decision. I believe mudslinging and smear campaigns are forms of control and propaganda because it takes advantage of the common voter who absorbs the attack ad and believes whatever it says. Upon researching the topic of mudslinging for this project I will be addressing questions such as why is mudslinging such a tradition in presidential elections, and how does it affects support and votes of a candidate? I will be reading books and doing online research on the origins of mudslinging, how it was used in previous presidential elections both long ago and more recent, and why it is used in the elections. I will then watch videos via Youtube on experts and their opinions of the candidates and their smear campaigns. I will also be watching examples of smear ads to see if there is a formula used to grab the attention of the common voter.