Did political ads on TV change your mind?

For today I'm going to ignore the grotesquely dangerous and undemocratic reality of very wealthy people spending tens of millions of their own money to try to buy elections.

I've seen estimates that the Democratic and Republican campaigns spent more than $2 billion in this political season, and among other things, bought more than 1,000,000 TV ads. You remember all of those positive, upbeat political ads you saw on TV…..

So I'm just asking these questions today:

Did all of the political ads you saw on TV influence the way you voted on Tuesday?

Did all of the political ads you saw on TV change your mind about any candidate?

Do you know anyone whose mind was changed about a candidate or an issue, after he or she saw political ads on TV?

How about political ads online?

How about those little signs that people put up in their front yards?

How about bumper stickers?

When did you make up your mind about voting for President Obama or Romney?

…and here's another question: How much of the information—and the unrelenting harshly partisan commentary—that you got from the news media and the cable TV talking heads actually helped you to make up your mind about who would get your vote?

Our political campaigns are too long, too expensive, too wacky and too nasty….and, in many ways, useless.


too much money and politics don't mix

..elections for sale