Final answer:
The 'Daisy Girl' commercial is seen as a negative ad against Barry Goldwater because it implied a risk of nuclear war under his presidency, leveraging fears without explicitly naming him. The ad portrayed Lyndon Johnson as the safer choice, a tactic that has since become a mainstay in political campaigning.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Daisy Girl commercial is considered a negative campaign ad against Barry Goldwater, even though it does not mention his name, by implying a significant danger in Goldwater's potential presidency in terms of nuclear policy. The ad, which shows a little girl picking petals from a daisy before cutting to a nuclear explosion countdown, capitalizes on the fear of nuclear war and Goldwater's reputation for having an aggressive stance on nuclear weapons use.
The implicit message here is that Lyndon Johnson was the safer choice, particularly given the high stakes of the Cold War. By choosing not to mention Goldwater by name but instead using powerful visuals and indirect references to his policies, the ad conveyed the message that Goldwater's election might lead to catastrophic consequences.
This approach of playing on the fears of the electorate without directly attacking the opponent was groundbreaking in political advertising and solidified the use of negative campaigning in future elections. The ad hinted that Goldwater might start an atomic war, which was a subtle but clear attack on his character and decision-making abilities.