Testimonial
- Celebrity or community leader publicly supports a candidate
Plain Folk
- Attempt to be âjust one of the peopleâ
- Get ordinary citizens to identify with a political candidate or other figure that they otherwise may have nothing in common with
- Not wearing suits, doing everyday activities, pictures with their families, average joe
Transfer
- Popular symbols to create a positive connotation and negative for opponent
- Transfer positive (or negative) feelings about an image to the candidate
- Examples: Positive- Flags waving, happy music, smiling childrenâ¦; Negative- Black and White, Jail bars, Scary Music, ominous voiceâ¦
Glittering Generality
- Vague or broad statements
- Slogan is so attractive you donât question what it means
- Will use positive terms no one will question: democracy, freedom, liberty, dream, and family
Card Stacking
- Giving only one side of facts to support a candidateâs opinion
- Uses positive stats, facts, and figures
- Bad stuff is left out entirely
Labeling
- Identifying as un-American
- Name-callers use labels like terrorist, traitor, or hypocrite.
- Utilize negatively charged words to describe ideas or beliefs, including radical, stingy, and cowardly
Bandwagon
- Everyone else is doing it, so should you
- Will often use poll results
Contrast
- Compares the two candidates
- Positive images of the candidate with negative of the opponent
Fear
- Designed to scare people into choosing sides.
- Worst-case scenarios presented of horrible things to come if a particular action isn't taken.
- Special interest groups use this technique to discourage activities such as smoking, drinking alcohol, and driving recklessly.