Why Do Negative Political Attack Ads Work?

As Election Day approaches, you have probably noticed the negative political ads on television and radio. Almost half of Americans think we are seeing more of this nasty business this election season.

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Most also say they don't work. In a recent survey, 58-percent of those polled told Rasmussen Reports they might even vote for the other candidate because of the negative ad.

"I usually go look it up and see if what they're actually talking about is true. I don't just go by what the ads say," said one woman.

"I would do my best to find out if that were true on my own and not just take their word for it," one man said.

"I would do the research. I wouldn't just believe the other party," another man said.

If that's true, why do so many candidates rely on negative ads to get votes? Obviously they do work in some way, so FOX 2 went to work to find out why.

Murray Feldman posed the following questions to Dr. Mike Bernacchi, a professor of marketing at the University of Detroit Mercy, and Steve Hood, a political consultant who has crafted many negative ads in his time.

• Why do negative ads work?
   
• If negative ads work so well, why don't we see more of it with competing products? For example, why doesn't Pepsi come out with an ad that says Coke is junk?
   
• 62-percent of Americans in a recent Rassmussen Reports survey think you can win a campaign without going negative. Are we ever going to see the day where a candidate takes the high road?
   
• Almost seven out of ten Americans are now turning to the internet to research their candidates. Does that change the game for the creators of political ads?
   
• Google says its political advertising for Senate and gubernatorial races is up 800-percent. Is this a cleaner way to get a message out?

Two good resources for getting to the truth behind political ads,  www.factcheck.org and politifact.com .

Click on the video player to watch the conversation, and then we want to know what you think. Post your comments in the section below.