WE ARE what we consume.

WHETHER in reference to food or information, this adage applies.

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In the Information Age, this maxim may seem to argue for the impact of particular messages pushed by the mass media.

The quantity and variety of advertising bombarding audiences prior to elections seemingly underscore that politicians and their handlers view that media exposure is just as influential as traditional campaigns in influencing voters.

Thinking oranges, seeing oranges

Yet, milestone studies also point out that, contrary to the perspective of media impact as a “magic bullet,” the peripheral route of persuasion coursed through infotainment and propaganda has only limited effects.

According to Glenn G. Sparks’ “Media Effects Research,” the limited-effects model stemmed from the findings of “The People’s Choice” Study.

To find out “how and why people decided to vote as they did,” researchers of Columbia University followed a main panel of 600 people, interviewing each respondent seven times, during the entire campaign period up to the day of the voting for the 1940 presidential election between the Republican challenger, Wendell Willkie, and the Democratic incumbent, Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The study also compared their findings of control groups, each also with 600 respondents.

“The People’s Choice” Study shattered two major preconceptions accepted until then as mass persuasion principles.

The results showed that media exerted only a “negligible” impact in converting a voter to shift alliances from one candidate to another.

However, media exposure was stronger in reinforcing a voter’s beliefs. About half of the respondents already made their choice and only chose the media that reinforced the idea that their choice was right.

That audiences selected their exposure and that media was limited in influencing people were collaborated by Fritz Hippler, who produced Nazi propaganda during World
War II.

Interviewed by journalist Bill Moyers, Hippler recalled that Nazi propaganda focused on scenes showing military superiority, never showing images that showed the death and destruction caused by war.

According to Sparks, this was the important brainwashing principle discovered by the Nazis: “People only want to see things that they find to be agreeable.”

Volatile voters

Despite the interval of time, the limited-effects findings of the Columbia research team have been reinforced, not diminished.

In the 1940s, radio messages failed to swing the votes because the political era was relatively stable: “strong party identification and straight-ticket voting.”

Currently, political systems are rapidly undergoing changes.

The country, for instance, exhibits the phenomenon of “voter volatility.”

According to Sparks, these are the characteristics of an unstable political system: “fewer people who identify strongly with a single party, more people who call themselves independents, and more people splitting their ticket at the polls.”

The unpredictability of the political climate now drives more people to seek the media.

But rather than search only for the false security of repeating predispositions and protecting biases, audiences must be self-aware and critical to do their share in democracy.

Unlike in communication models, citizens in reality are active, not passive, participants in shaping media effects.

According to Sparks, media analyst Robert Cialdini cites six “weapons of influence” used in mass media attempts at persuasion.

Alert citizens can use these red lights to sieve mass media content in these politically feverish times:

Reciprocity. People feel obliged to return favors. When a politician emphasizes the good he has done, view this as part of his accountability to constituents, not an extended favor demanding your uncritical vote.

Commitment and consistency. Don’t pander to your closely held beliefs. Keep an open mind and listen to alternative views.

Social proof. Don’t look to the media to determine how you should think and behave. Be wary of heavily biased messages inserted by spin doctors.

Liking. People are more susceptible to being influenced by people they like. A movie star’s looks and acting awards are not the best credentials for political endorsement.

Authority. Don’t be deceived either by the trappings of authority. Check whether the testimonial on a candidate’s environmental platform indeed comes from long-term experts or development workers.

Scarcity. There’s a “danger of relying exclusively on the scarcity of a product to determine its worth.” You might discover that the unique product—whether a detergent or a politician—is not worth the price you paid.

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on November 9, 2009.