Ad Analysis
Jad Melki & Herbert W. McConnell
Bush/Cheney "Medicare Hypocrisy"
- Ad Title: “Medicare Hypocrisy”
- Ad Sponsor: Bush/Cheney
- Issue of Focus: John Kerry's honesty/record on Medicare
- Type of Advertisement: Negative Advertisement
- Release Date: September 9, 2004
- Length: 30 seconds
"Medicare Hypocrisy" Script
President Bush [v/o]: I'm George W. Bush, and I approve this message.
(On screen: www.georgewbush.com)
Announcer [v/o]: John Kerry, attacking the president on Medicare.
(On screen: September 5, 2004; "Kerry Slams Bush Over Medicare Premiums")
But it was Sen. Kerry who voted five times to raise Medicare premiums.
(On screen: CQ Votes: 379: 12/19/85; #419: 12/21/87, #243: 10/13/89, #247: 8/6/93, #209: 7/31/97)
Kerry voted to require premium increases -- calling the passage of the bill "a day of vindication."
(On screen: John Kerry; July 31, 1987)
The same John Kerry who was absent for 36 of 38 Medicare votes last year, even one giving seniors prescription drug coverage.
(On screen: CQ Sen. Votes, 108th Cong.)
John Kerry. He actually voted for higher Medicare premiums before he came out against them.
(On screen: Approved By President Bush And Paid For By Bush-Cheney '04 Inc.)
Analysis of "Medicare Hypocrisy"
Introduction
This is one of President George W. Bush's latest commercials aimed at winning over a chunk of the senior vote by offsetting the traditional advantage of Democrats on this issue (Bush-Cheney, 04). Robert Pear and Carl Hulse write in the New York Times , that “…the administration, seeing itself as potentially vulnerable on Medicare, is eager to avoid any political damage, particularly after Mr. Kerry repeatedly attacked the president on the issue of higher premiums.” In fact, the ad was released on September 9, 2004 , after Kerry and fellow Democrats started attacking the President on Medicare (Pear and Hulse, 2004).
In general, the ad conveys three main points whether explicitly or implicitly: that Presidential candidate John Kerry advocates higher premiums for Medicare; that Kerry doesn't care about seniors and issues that affect them; and that Kerry is a hypocrite and a ‘flip-flopper.' The first two are specific to the Medicare issue (and seniors demographic). The latter fits a general image of Kerry that the Bush campaign would like to present.
The ad starts with the legal message each candidate has to include. The rest of it takes on a somewhat constant look: a white background with a rectangular plasma TV on the left side of the screen. The same plasma TV image has been used in several other ads. Kerry is shown inside the plasma TV, at first moving, but later in a freeze-frame. On the right side various captions would appear either scrolling from bottom to top or suddenly appearing. The plasma screen changes shape twice: a quick zoom-in-zoom-out at the beginning and a ‘flip-flop' special-effect at the end.
First: A Man of the People
The ad starts by President Bush saying, “I'm George W. Bush and I approve this message.” The video shows the president surrounded by people while he talks to a person wearing a cap. Casually dressed, Bush is leaning over to the person with his left arm on the guy's shoulder, while his right (not on camera) seems to be shaking the guys hand. Showing only the guy's left ear, the camera angle barely gives him a quarter of the screen (bottom right), whereas the president whose face is clearly shown occupies more than half the screen (left and middle). No music is playing while the president is talking. The only caption shown is the President's web site. This section gives the impression of a down-to-earth president casually talking to a regular guy on the street – a man of the people. This is in contrast to most other introductions to Bush's ads where he is shown formally dressed in a presidential setting or with his wife.
Second: John Kerry is for Raising Medicare Premiums
The central message of this ad is explicitly stated with a narrator's news-anchorman-like voice speaking in a serious and accusational tone. It starts with the white background and plasma TV described earlier. While a track of (moderate) suspense music plays in the background, the narrator states: "John Kerry... Attacking the President on Medicare."
At first, Kerry is shown in slow motion, casually dressed, not smiling, moving around and speaking into a microphone with several people in the background. Simultaneously, the following caption scrolls up from behind the plasma screen (note the quotes): "September 5, 2004, “Kerry Slams Bush Over Medicare Premiums."
This byte gives the impression that it was in these images that Kerry was ‘attacking the president' on this issue. The suspense music and dim video shot of a grim-faced Kerry unmistakably relays the seriousness of the situation, with a slight touch of evil hovering over the false accuser who is soon to become the accused (Kerry). The combination of video, music and words here convey an aura of stereotypical viciousness, suggesting that Kerry is the aggressive attacker. The instant the narrator finishes the first sentence, the screen swiftly zooms in to a medium-tight shot on Kerry's face, which is still grim, but now with facial shadows more pronounced, especially around his eyes. The zoom is accompanied by a ‘swoosh' sound effect accentuating its power and giving the impression of a finger pointing toward a guilty person on the stand. Just as the zoom starts, the narrator says the following: "But it was Senator Kerry who voted five times to raise Medicare premiums."
At the same time the following caption appears, with the purpose of giving the last statement credibility and documentation, while at the same time affirming the message itself (note the small font of the last three sentences): "voted 5 times to raise Medicare premiums CQ Votes #379: 12/19/85 #419: 2/21/87, #243: 10/13/89 #247: 8/6/93, #209: 7/31/97.
The given documentation establishes the narrated message as fact, while at the same time not highlighting details of those votes by keeping the vote number and date in small font. The caption appears for five seconds, just enough time to read the main message. The obvious assumption here is that voting in favor of those laws means Kerry is for higher Medicare premiums. But Pear and Hulse say, “the votes, from 1985 to 1997, were not on premiums alone, but on comprehensive budget bills that included hundreds of provisions affecting Medicare and scores of other federal programs” (Pear and Hulse, 2004).
Again with a swoosh, the screen zooms back out to its original position, with Kerry's image kept frozen until the end of the ad. The narrator continues: "Kerry voted to require premium increases, calling the passage of the bill a day of vindication."
The message parallels the following caption: "Kerry voted to require Medicare premium increases, CQ VOTE #209, 7/31/97.
Day of Vindication
"John Kerry, July 31, 1997": Again the caption reinforces the message and attempts to give it more credibility, this time by also quoting Kerry himself. At this point the combination of video, sound, text and narration has a devastating effect on Kerry's image: Not only did he hypocritically attack the President on Medicare when he himself voted for higher Medicare Premiums, but he also expressed his joy for hurting seniors, or as a Washington Post editorial puts it, “as if Mr. Kerry had been celebrating socking it to seniors” (Editorial, Washington Post , 2004).
Checking the facts, several media sources noted that the last line (day of vindication) was taken out of context and utilized in a questionable manner. It implies that Kerry described the “premium increases” as “a day of vindication,” although it reflects Kerry's feelings about something else. “In fact,” says the same Washington Post editorial, “the law, the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, included a well-intentioned effort to rein in Medicare costs, but what Mr. Kerry was praising was its child tax credits for working-class families and expanded coverage for uninsured children” (Editorial, Washington Post , 2004).
Howard Kurtz on Inside Politics also suggests that the “last line is misleading. Kerry was praising [the] passage of President Clinton's 1997 balanced-budget law, backed by most Republicans, which included Medicare and other cutbacks, but which also wiped out the federal deficit…” (Kurtz, 2004).
In addition to being the climax point for the ad, this byte also functions as a transition point from the main message (Kerry is for higher Medicare premiums) to the equally damaging message: Kerry couldn't care less about seniors and their issues.
Third: John Kerry Doesn't Care about Seniors
The last narration set the stage for the second message that Kerry doesn't care about seniors. The narrator builds on that message with the following statement: "The same John Kerry who was absent for 36 of 38 Medicare votes last year ...even one giving seniors prescription drug coverage."
The text here also follows the same message. The word ‘ABSENT' is set in caps and big bold font, surrounded by a rectangular border, and fixed on top of the following two separate captions presented back to back that cite votes missed by Kerry concerning Medicare.
This message clearly depicts Kerry as a person who misses votes that are important for seniors, especially on Medicare. The assumption here is all 38 votes were important and beneficial to seniors. The Kerry/Edwards Web site replies to this message describing the president's prescription drug bill, on the contrary, as “a Raw Deal for Seniors.” It says Kerry went out of his way and had to interrupt his presidential campaign twice to vote against it, “leaving Washington when after it became clear that the bill would pass regardless of his presence or absence” (Kerry-Edwards, 2004).
Finally: Kerry the Flip-Flopper and Hypocrite
At the end of the ad, the music suddenly becomes a little louder, faster and sarcastic, and the narrator, also sarcastically, ends with the following sentence: "John Kerry... he actually voted for higher Medicare premiums... before he came out against them."
This message echoes prior Bush ads that play on Kerry's now well-known sentence: “I actually did vote for the 87 billion dollars… before I voted against it.” Further, it parallels a slogan that concludes several other Bush ads: “There is what Kerry says… and then there is what Kerry does.” But the most powerful element in this byte that distinctly reminds the listeners of the ‘flip-flopper' symbol is an actual flip-flip graphic effect that brings a second plasma screen swinging out of the first. The final image is two TV screens showing two Kerry's. The symbolism can't be missed.
Sources
Bush-Cheney 04 Web Site, Video and Audio, Medicare Hypocrisy, Video format, http://www.georgewbush.com/VideoAndAudio/ Accessed 9-18-04
Editorial, "Health Care Humbug," The Washington Post, September 16, 2004 , Final ed., Editorial, A30.
Kurtz, Howard, CNN's Reliable Sources, from Judy Woodruff's Inside Politics, CNN, September 14, 2004, Transcript # 091401CN.V15
Kerry-Edwards 04 Web Site, Bush-Cheney Ad Fact Check: “Medicare Hypocrisy”, September 17, 2004 , http://blog.johnkerry.com/rapidresponse/archives/002843.html#more Accessed 9-18-04
Pear, Robert and Hulse, Carl, Medicare Costs Are New Focus for Candidates , New York Times, September 12, 2004 , Late Edition, Section 1, Column 2, National Desk, Pg. 1.
(September 24, 2004)
© Copyright 2004, The Center for Political Communication and Civic Leadership.