During this election season, political candidates seem willing to do anything to win, or more accurately, to beat the other candidate. In commercials, candidates on both sides typically say something positive about themselves, followed by something very negative about their opponent that may or may not contain some truth, but is often exaggerated. This morning on the radio I heard an advertisement for some minor political candidate, who said she was going to bring change to Washington, and that her opponent was untrustworthy. The advertisement was paid for by her friends. After the commercial I had no idea if the candidate was independent, republican, democratic, or in the tea party. The point is that these candidates, regardless of their party, say something that everyone agrees with, such as their intention to create more jobs, but keep it so general that there is nothing controversial in their message. Of course, they also fail to explain how they will accomplish what they promise, and they blame their opponent for something everyone hates, like being untrustworthy.
Instead of proudly voicing their opinions, and saying why they believe they are better than their opponent, candidates do whatever it takes to put themselves into office. Now although I would like to blame the candidates for their black and white advertisements, our society is to blame. These commercials are created because this is what the audience responds to; brief sentences requiring little thought designed to bring out an emotional response in the listener. I believe there should be tougher restrictions on commercials requiring that they tell the truth, so the audience doesn't have to be exposed to so much false advertising.
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