Advertising Advantage in the Role of Politics

According to the article in the L.A. Times, corporations and unions will now be able to indirectly support their favorite candidates through advertising. They might not be able to contribute their funds directly to the candidate of their choice, but they can basically sponsor their own commercial in favor of that candidate. Some people argue that this new legislation will make a candidate's ads more important than the candidate's views on important issues. Some even say that these new ads may be like scare tactics for future candidates. If the advertising is too harsh, future runners may think twice about getting involved in order to avoid commercial harassment or embarrassment. Others argue that the new legislation will have little to no effect on the political world. People will still vote for who they want despite the battles present in advertising. Advertising before an election is hard to come by anyway, therefore, this legislation may just make the price of ads go up because more people are fighting to get a spot. It is basic supply and demand. Democrats believe Republicans will have more of an advantage when it comes to major corporations showing support for their candidate. In relation to the Florida article on National Public Radio, it seems like the reformed legislation may provide a way for bondsmen to gain more business by trying to demolish the Pretrial process. If a bondsmen company or union comes up with enough money, they can produce their own ads that attack candidates that are for the Pretrial process and encourage those that are against it. An example of a bondsmen ad might say something like this: "This guy wants to give criminals another chance by letting them live somewhat normal lives until trial. Our guy on the hand keeps criminals in the place they need to be, jail." Taxpayers know jail is more expensive than the Pretrial process, therefore, these ads need to be powerful enough to get people to change their minds about who to support. This legislation is a welcomed opportunity for the bondsmen, who were previously losing a lot of business to criminals being released on the Pretrial process. Originally, the Pretrial process was working fine until bondsmen decided to attack it with a lobbyist. I guess they need to make a living, too, and the Pretrial process is preventing that. In the end, it seems like politics is all about who is spending the most money.