Analysis of a Political Advertisement

The purpose of this video ad seems to be one thing: making sure John McCain comes across as more conservative than Senator Clinton. McCain is shown to be against 'wasteful' spending, while Clinton is shown to support frivolous spending such as the Woodstock museum. It is implied that this is a habit of hers. The audience would probably have to watch some of McCain's other videos to see that, at the time Woodstock was going on, he was a POW in the Vietnam War. His other videos on the same site show footage of him from the 1960's, lying on a hospital bed, talking about enemy gunfire and having broken his legs and arms. It starts out with a claim of policy, that Clinton supports the Woodstock museum, where McCain does not.

John McCain-Woodstock Museum Video Argument Analysis

It is apparent the makers of the video assume the viewer is conservative (like McCain). It also assumes that the interested viewer is older, probably not the type who would have gone to Woodstock in the first place, perhaps even a Veteran (again, like McCain) or the spouse of a Veteran. Probably because of the other assumptions, it seems they expect the viewer to be receptive to visual cues like McCain walking with Regan, or McCain talking intimately with US Veterans. The audience would probably have to watch some of McCain's other videos to see that, at the time Woodstock was going on, he was a POW in the Vietnam War. His other videos on the same site show footage of him from the 1960's, lying on a hospital bed, talking about enemy gunfire and having broken his legs and arms. It doesn't show any of that footage or even mention it in this video, perhaps because McCain didn't want to play that card too much (it is in two other videos), or perhaps because he felt the bad light he cast on Senator Clinton would be enough to get his point across. Hillary's standpoint or reasoning for supporting the museum is not stated. The audience is expected to make assumptions about Clinton's reasons for supporting the museum.

Several of the claims made border on all three of the categories listed in the text. The video uses opinion (either the candidate's opinion of himself or others' opinion of him) as a kind of fact, stating that the Citizens Against Government Waste says he is a taxpayer's hero. Whether he is or not cannot be determined from the video, but the visual aspects of the video drive the narrator's point home. It starts out with a claim of policy, that Clinton supports the Woodstock museum, where McCain does not. Viewers could find out from Senator Clinton's website or by searching recent news that she does, in fact support $1 million funding for the Woodstock museum. McCain's narrator states that McCain 'has been cutting wasteful spending for more than twenty years.' This too could be verified by looking at McCain's past political efforts, although it would be time consuming to look at twenty years worth. The ad's textual and audio information focus almost exclusively on one issue: money. Perhaps McCain is targeting the penny-pinching Depression generation, or perhaps these tactics appeal to certain age brackets.

By hailing McCain as a 'taxpayer hero,' the video paints him in a positive light, while shadowing Senator Clinton under claims that she is wasting our tax dollars. In my opinion, this somewhat harsh treatment of his opponent would be off-putting for many voters, chiefly those who favor Clinton's views on other issues, even if they do agree with McCain on the Woodstock museum issue. It very nearly seems like McCain makes fun of this historical and cultural event. Even though he doesn't mention being 'tied up,' i.e. a POW in Vietnam, he does use footage of himself with Veterans in the video. Whether it is intended to remind viewers of his background in the military or simply as a visual emotional plea (there was no reference to anything military in the video, other than the shot of McCain with the Veteran), it is a bit obvious that he is puffing himself up.

Woodstock-era music (look up song?) plays with a background of spinning tie-dye and images of a dancing girl. These are stock images of Woodstock, seen often when the event is talked about on television or online. There is not really a negative connotation on anything shown in the footage, which shows the crowd and the girl, just having fun at a massive concert event. Once Senator Clinton's image is put on screen though, the music abruptly comes to a halt, signifying the seriousness of the candidate about the issue at hand. The music does not come back until the final scenes of the video, which show a vinyl album spinning from its sleeve, the narrator telling us that McCain thinks those who wish to 'relive' Woodstock should "buy the record." Scenes of McCain speaking onstage seem to perpetuate this serious vibe. Toward the end of the video, while the narrator is talking about McCain having 'priorities,' McCain is shown working in an office setting, looking studious. His office scene has an old-fashioned, conservative vibe. The lighting resembles an old oil lamp, and there is, of course, an American flag hanging on a flagpole behind him.

The argument itself is structurally weak, covering too many topics in too short a piece. Although it is not difficult to follow, the variances in the subject matter make the argument weak in my opinion. Instead of simply stating his position, he pokes fun at the opposition-it makes him seem like a jealous schoolboy rather than a prominent politician. The shifts in his argument, in his supporting statements, lead to an inconsistency which is not appealing to me as a viewer. For me, the conclusion should wrap up the central argument and somehow bring everything together. It does, however, feel as if the basis for the argument is lost in the middle of the ad-we are expected to believe that Clinton supports this "frivolous" cause based on McCain's judgment. While he may have placed the positive visual and audio segments to beef up his image, to me they perpetuate the earlier mentioned image of McCain as a jealous schoolboy, perhaps even a bully.

With such a short piece, language and its usage become quite important. The tone (and the use) of the narrator are instrumental in getting the point across in this advertisement. In the first part of the video, where the visual and musical stimuli abruptly switch from fun and upbeat to black and white 'fact,' the narrator's tone also changes. There is a sharpness to the change, especially at the conjunction "but." I noted this in my transcript of the video, but it is difficult to formulate the words for the emotional factor this change creates. Also significant is the use of positive, emotionally laden terms such as 'priorities,' 'cultural event,' and 'worthy.' These types of words, charged with emotional energy and substance are placed to catch the attention of the audience, and to align the viewer with McCain's views. There is a duality of the connotation of the word 'worthy' in McCain's argument as well. The narrator states Woodstock, as a 'cultural event,' is worthy of fond memories, then questions whether this makes it worthy of a million of our tax dollars for a museum.

Overall, I found the argument intriguing, even if I don't quite agree with the way it is presented. While it is highly unlikely that I would personally vote for this candidate, his advertisement could influence some middle of the road voters to cast their ballots a bit more conservatively than they would have previously.

Works Cited

McCain, John. 4 President TV 2008 Woodstock video. 23 January 2008 .

Video Transcript

John McCain Woodstock Museum Video

[Woodstock footage scenes, girl dancing wildly, 'hippy' music]

Narrator: It was a cultural event that defined a generation, worthy of fond memories.

[Swirling tie-dye background behind white lettering which reads: $1 million tax dollars for a Woodstock museum?]

Narrator: But worthy of a million of your tax dollars to build a museum?

[Quick transition to black background, triple identical images of Hillary Clinton speaking to camera (no audio from Clinton). Black background, white lettering which reads: Hillary Clinton Thinks so.]

Narrator: Hillary Clinton thinks so.

[Switch to shot of McCain speaking onstage, flag behind him. Star pattern draws attention to his name and URL.]

(tone changes from harsh to mild)

Narrator: John McCain disagrees.

[Cuts to McCain talking, shaking hands with Veterans and laughing.]

Narrator: He's been cutting wasteful spending for more than 20 years.

[Cuts to McCain walking with Regan?]

Narrator: That's why Citizens Against Government Waste calls John McCain 'a taxpayer's hero.'

[Back to McCain talking in front of the flag.]
[Office scene, McCain working, looking at papers. (Flag hanging on flagpole in background. Office looks conservative, old-fashioned furniture and lighting figures.)

Narrator: It's a matter of priorities.

[Vinyl album spins out of sleeve, Woodstock scenes in background.]

Narrator: John McCain says if you want to relive Woodstock, buy the record.

McCain's voice: I'm John McCain and I approve this message.