Does the ad reference a longstanding racial stereotype historically associated with African-Americans? Does it state or suggest that President Obama is untrustworthy or prone toward criminality? Does it imply that he takes advantage of the system or is lazy?
, for instance, has the effect of presenting the untrustworthiness stereotype, calling Obama鈥檚 statements 鈥渘ot true,鈥� and 鈥渕isleading.鈥� Then the ad goes a step beyond, by saying, 鈥渂ut that鈥檚 Barack Obama,鈥� that is, the kind of person who misleads and says things that are not true.
The political ads we watched when compiling our index featured these kinds of racial stereotypes most frequently. But any stereotype reference increases the likelihood that the ad in question will draw out viewers鈥� negative associations with people of color. And while charges of criminality, untrustworthiness, and the like are standard attacks on white candidates, there is no stereotype associating whites, as a group, with criminality, untrustworthiness, freeloading, or laziness, so the potential effect is not the same.
But stereotype references in political ads can be subtle, and thus other additional features can make the stereotype more salient to viewers.
