Consultants' Corner: Letting The Answers Speak For Themselves
In our weekly "Consultant Candids," we ask participants to label negative campaigning as good or bad. Their responses thus far were of a wide variety. Take a look:
Putting It Into Perspective
The use of negative campaign strategies was especially highlighted in this last cycle, but according to some consultants, the concept has been around the block.
GMMB Sr. VP Susan DiLiddo Michels: "Negative campaigning is... as old as time and human nature. The Romans campaigned negatively; Shakespeare dedicated an entire play to negative campaigning -- Richard III."
Targeted Creative Communications' Dan Hazelwood: "It is a myth that negative messaging is a recent invention. The Bible goes pretty negative on Pharaoh and the snake gets a pretty high unfavorable rating by the end of Genesis. That's appropriate."
Get Over It
It might have been around since the beginning of time, but where did negative campaigning get such a bad rap? Consultants point to the media. [KATHERINE LEHR]
McLaughlin & Assoc. CEO/partner John McLaughlin: "Having a good, honest issue debate with real differences is good. Being labeled by the media as a negative campaigner is bad - especially when it seems that's all the mainstream media covers."
Public Opinion Strategies' Glen Bolger: "Voters should know if the Democrat is an ethical sleazeball. Not all negative campaigning works or is appropriate, but the biannual handwringing by the press over negative campaigns is tiresome. Deal with it. It has to be factual to work."
Just Part Of The Game
Some consultants, such as Stevens and Schriefer Group's Russ Schriefer, simply enjoy it. Schriefer: "I sleep better at night knowing a negative ad is on the air"
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