Final answer:
Negative campaign commercials aim to influence voters by promoting negative information about a candidate's opponent. Despite the potential for reducing voter turnout, these commercials are impactful due to their emotional appeal and memorability.
Step-by-step explanation:
A political candidate uses a negative campaign commercial, where the competitor is associated with adverse imagery like an angry mob, with the intent to influence voters' perceptions. This strategy is known as negative campaigning and is a prevalent trend within politics. It involves the promotion of negative information about an opponent to undermine their reputation or platform, often presenting the candidate in a more favorable light by comparison. The use of false narratives and emotional appeal is common in these ads.
The purpose of such commercials is to evoke emotional responses from voters that can lead to various outcomes. Negative ads are designed to be memorable and can decrease voter turnout due to increased cynicism, although they may still effectively sway some undecided or less-informed voters. In tightly contested races, negative campaigning dominates because it can make a larger impact in a shorter time span.
Historical examples, such as Lyndon B. Johnson's "The Daisy Girl" ad from 1964, illustrate the power of negative advertising in swaying public opinion. Overall, while the effectiveness of negative ads may be questioned, their frequency and impact on elections remain significant.