Types of Political Communication

— -- Categories of Political Communication:

Radio

Legitimate political commercials usually are clearly identified with a particular candidate or cause, i.e., you'll hear "Vote for Joe Blow on election day."

If you can't figure out who paid for something, that's usually a signal to listen more closely. Take detailed notes, and listen in particular for any "paid for by X" line.

If you're tuned in for a long stretch of time, try and remember how many times you hear a particular commercial. Note the type of music used, and any relevant sound effects.

Make certain you note the call letters, station number, and time of day you heard the ad.

Often the most "out there" radio ads run on specialty radio stations that target a particular type of listener.

Direct Mail

Political direct mail can come from a candidate, a campaign committee, an advocacy group you've heard of, or one you haven't.

Make sure you save the contents of envelopes, but also the envelopes themselves, since they sometimes contain clues about where the letter came from, as well as some of the most questionable rhetoric.

E-Mail

A tough one, because unless you have the skills of a hacker, it's often hard to figure out where they come from. Read 'em and see if you can figure out who sent them. If you can't, then they probably don't want you to know who sent them. Which means that we DO want you to send them to us!

Internet

Political folks still aren't sure about how to make the Internet work for them. They're excited, though, because most voters now have access to the web, and communicating that way is relatively cheap

Candidates have their own websites, as do advocacy groups, campaign committees, political action committees, and independent so-called "527" groups.

Rules about identifying the site owners/financial backers are virtually nonexistent, so websites often don't make clear their owners' identities, and it's sometimes very difficult to tell the provenance of a particular page.