PARC Analysis "Reasons"

The greatest accusation waged against Kerry in the 2004 election is the idea that he lacks consistency in his opinion—that he is a “flip-flopper.” This ad attempts to discredit Bush's reasoning for preempting the Iraq war by portraying him as a “flip-flopper,” himself because of his changing positions for waging war against Iraq . Within the ad, Bush's inconsistencies are backed by his quotes on the war and headlines from newspapers across the country, which cite his inconsistencies and consequential damages of the Iraq war. The Kerry campaign is attempting to discredit claims of Kerry's flip-flopping by proving the hypocritical stance the president has taken on Iraq . This sharp attack-ad emerged in preparation for the October 1st presidential debates, while Kerry was significantly down in the polls.

The primary assumption of this ad is that Bush exhibits inconsistencies in justifying the war against Iraq . The assumption insinuates that he has led America into an escalating and unnecessary war. The death, destruction, and damage shown in clips from Iraq serve to intensify this argument by persuading through fast and intense visual stimulation of bombs exploding, fires raging, insurgents shooting, and U.S. soldiers mourning. The effect of a shaky camera footage in cinema verite style suggests a real time expression of the Iraq war from the perspective of the U.S. soldier.

The end of the ad shows text summarizing the argument: “Maybe George Bush can't tell us why he went to Iraq , but it's time he tells us how he's going to fix it.” This encompasses the argumentative range of the commercial—the “why” that addresses the various reasons offered by Bush and the “how” that addresses the disturbing scenes from the war. The desired end result is a portrayal of Bush as deceptive and uncertain of how his choices could affect the peace-making process in Iraq.

“Reasons”: A Chronological Assessment

“I'm John Kerry…”

The placement of John Kerry's voice and image in the beginning of the ad serve to separate him from the negative attacks that follow his compulsory mention, “I'm John Kerry and I approve this message.” Kerry is placed strategically within the ad's context, first, to absolve him of responsibility for the negativity of the ad, something viewers would link him with if seeing his image and hearing his voice immediately after negative charges were waged against President Bush. The content of the ad is preluded by a cymbal roll, pulsing rhythm, and recurring note that is reminiscent of music heard during a movie's spy sequence— intense and foretelling of the drama waiting to unfold.

The image presented is one of John Kerry nodding, smiling and standing above us through the camera angle. Along with the head-shot are frames on the right-hand side of the screen. One displays Kerry with his arms around a group of elderly folks, the other shows Kerry against the background of the patriotic American flag.

The Many Faces of George Bush

Instantly after Kerry's voiceover, the male narrator jumps in, as bold, capital-lettered, white text is emblazed on the screen, both simultaneously asking, “Why did George Bush go to war in Iraq ?” While saying this, the tone of the narrator's voice turns inquisitive, employing intonations similar to a curious child asking “why,” with weight placed on “war” and “ Iraq ” to underscore contention and discord between the words and thoughts. As he is finishing this first question, rows of television screens displaying the same picture of President Bush appear, quickly, one after another. This imagery is intimidating. The takeover of screens (computer or television) with repetitious images has been used in films in the past to frighten, urging feelings of an invasion, infestation, or loss of control. To magnify this visual effect, the picture used of George Bush is one where his background is a multi-paneled window, adding an ordered, but chaotic feel to the imagery.

The square pictures of Bush implicitly state that there are many George Bushes. A blue filter is placed on the pictures; Bush's suit, tie, and hair, as a result, give off a colder feeling. As the pictures fill the screen, the narrator says: “the reasons keep changing,” implying the many different reasons offered by Bush imply that George Bush is not being honest. The intonation and emphasis in this last line are placed on “reasons” and “changing,” simulating an overwhelmed or exhausted feeling in the narrator and, possibly, the viewer.

As the intense, monotone pulse continues, a screen of George Bush talking in slow-motion zooms up to the television while the male narrator says, “First it was weapons of mass destruction—,” to which a solemn female voice replies, “Not true.” While this is being said, a quotation from President Bush's appears under the picture from 1/22/04 : “ The dictator of Iraq has got weapons of mass destruction. ” The quotation is accompanied by large yellow text that declares, “NOT TRUE,” which zooms up to stamp Bush's words as falsehoods. While the same clip of Bush is replayed, the narrator cites another claim from President Bush about the rationale for war in Iraq : “Later, Iraq 's links to Al-Qaeda.” The text visually backs up the argument:, “There was a relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda George Bush, 6/17/04 .” Again, the female narrator charges: “Not true!,” which is accompanied by the same yellow stamp that reads, “NOT TRUE.” This time, the female narrator is sounding more irritated and concerned. The use of a female voice is effective for falsifying Bush's arguments objectively, by separating her from the accuser, the male narrator. The female voice is also effective because it is soft though tough, emblematic of a maternal figure's authority—one of truth and honesty.

The camera tightens in on the multiple Bush pictures, until only six take up the screen. A newspaper headline, “Bush and Iraq ; Invasion Rationales Wither as Facts Unfold—Philadelphia Inquirer, 6-20-04 ,” appears as the narrator says, “One reason after another, a new one offered every time the facts crumble.” The footage of Bush is unflattering. He seems to be looking into the sun, his eyes are squinted and his forehead is wrinkled—his face devoid of emotion.

As soon as the next word, “Now,” is spoken, the screen switches to flashy, eye-catching shots of the horrors occurring in Iraq . As the narrator says, “Now, Americans are being kid napped, held hos tage, even be head ed. Over one thousand U.S. soldiers have died,” the scenes flash by: an insurgent shooting his gun, a fiery car-explosion, a bomb exploding inside a building—the shock being felt by the shaky camera as a group of U.S. soldiers surround a burning wreck. The images reflect scenes of horror, particularly because of the fast array of images presented and simultaneity of article headlines: “IRAQ IN CRISES” – Philadelphia Inquirer , 9-19-04, “Militants Behead American Hostage in Iraq” – Miami Herald , 9-21-04, “Captors Behead American Hostage” – Atlanta Journal Constitution, 9-21-04, “Iraq Toll Tops 1000” – Newsday , 9-08-04, “Latest Deaths Push US Toll Past 1000” – NY Post , 9-08-04. This bombardment of visual and verbal messages plays into a feel of chaos, while the looming text from headlines serves as an anchor for the chaos.

“Why” and “How”

The chaotic array of pictures from Iraq switches quickly to the ending clip, imparting a relatively simple and succinct message: “Maybe George Bush can't tell us why he went to Iraq . But it's time he tells us how he's going to fix it.” In this last shot, white words appear on a black background with the questions “why” and “how” appearing in red. This slogan-type ending summarizes, chronologically, the rhetoric and images that the ad has revealed. “Maybe George Bush can't tell us why he went to Iraq ” summarizes the initial charges made against President Bush, “…but it's time he tells us how he's going to fix it.” That latter emphasizes that this war has to be fixed. In a sense, John Kerry is nudging Bush to reply with his ad, encouraging some sort of response that details “how” the President proposes to make Iraq peaceful. This is strategic, arguably, because there is no guarantee for “fixing” Iraq . In all, the end is accusatory and authoritative. The ad offers George Bush a chance to appease the American people, but it also is asking him to respond to the senator, which would inevitably place Bush on the defensive.

Washington , DC - In advance of Thursday's presidential debate on foreign policy [ September 30, 2004 ], the Kerry-Edwards campaign released a new ad. The ad takes note of the president's many reasons for going to war, as well as his lack of plan to fix it.

Bush Rushed To War With No Plan To Win The Peace. Bush told the country that the administration would "plan carefully" for a war in Iraq . Yet in August 2003, the Joint Chiefs of Staff prepared a secret report assessing the post-war planning for Iraq . The report blamed "setbacks in Iraq on a flawed and rushed war- planning process." It also said "planners were not given enough time" to plan for reconstruction.

It's looking increasingly like one of the key questions at tomorrow night's [September 30] presidential debate will be: Who's the biggest flip-flopper?

President Bush has arguably succeeded in making resoluteness in the face of terror the defining issue of the campaign.

Ad Analysis

“Reasons”: A Chronological Assessment

“I'm John Kerry…”

The Many Faces of George Bush

“Why” and “How”