Many of you will be familiar with this ad from the Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund, which reportedly is planning to air in limited TV runs in OH and FL.
The ad attacks Gov. Palin for promoting the aerial hunting of wolves -- including her effort (rebuffed by an AK court) to provide a bounty from taxpayer funds on delivery of a wolf's left foreleg. It includes graphic and -- for many -- very disturbing footage of a snowbound wolf writhing in pain after being shot from the air.
The ad has attracted several hundred thousand views on Youtube. It also attracted a vitriolic column from the inestimable Al Giordano's The Field. Giordano argued that it is counter-productive, and is a good example of how an independent group's ad can muddy, and potentially detract from, the campaign's message.
The ad has also prompted vigorous discussions as to whether it is, overall, politically effective -- or whether it would seem to swing voters as lilly-livered liberal fretting over a predatory beast.
Now there is at least some evidence that the ad is quite effective indeed. A focus group study by HCD Research suggests that the ad may be considerably more effective than most of the ads run by the respective campaigns:
"The ad which focuses on Governor Palin's record regarding the treatment of wildlife in Alaska seemed to strike a chord with voters," commented Glenn Kessler, president and CEO, HCD Research. "The recent ads from both parties have had little impact among voters. This is the first ad in over a month that seems to have broken through," he added.
Among the study findings:
The ad earned Barack Obama a Political Communications Impact Score (PCIS) of 29.4 and John McCain received a score of 5.9, resulting in a net score of 23.5 for Barack Obama. The scores can be compared to a mean score of 9.3 for previously tested Obama ads and 7.5 for previously tested McCain ads. To date, the total mean score for all previously tested ads is 8.3.
The study may be found:
here
It should be noted that the focus groupies' reactions were surely not due to exceptional production values in the ad; it is low-tech, and low-glitter. But if the study does reflect something, it reminds us how polymorphously perverse are the ways to the political heart.
Hat tip to TMP citizen-blogger whose post is here
I now see that Kula2316 had an earlier diaryabout this study, which has now, sadly, scrolled by.
UPDATE: Courtesy of commenter SammyJames, this item from The Guardian. If this is right, I'm starting to think this whole set of issues might -- unlike Gov. Palin's wolves -- have legs:
This summer, she reached new lows in the eyes of conservationists by approving the killing of black bear sows with cubs. The year before, she put a $150 bounty on wolf paws to entice hunters to kill more of these elusive wild dogs. She also spent $400,000 of public money to defeat an initiative that would have banned aerial hunting of wolves for sport
Here is the link to the Guardian piece, which is well worth reading.