It has been estimated that more than three million political ads were televised leading up to the elections of 2004.  More than $800,000,000 was spent on TV ads in the race for the White House alone and presidential candidates, along with their party and interest group allies, broadcast over a million ads -- more than twice the number aired before the 2000 elections.  What were the consequences of this barrage of advertising?

Were viewers turned off by political advertising to the extent that it disuaded them from voting, as some critics suggest?  Did they feel more connected to political issues and the political system or were they alienated?  These are the questions this book answers, based on a unique, robust, and extensive database dedicated to political advertising.

Confronting prevailing opinion, the authors of this carefully researched work find that political ads may actually educate, engage, and mobilize American voters.  Only in the rarest of circumstances do they have negative impacts.

Michael M. Franz is Assistant Professor of Government and Legal Studies at Bowdoin College.  His research interests include political advertising, interest groups politics, campaign finance reform, and mass media.  He has published articles in American Journal of Political Science, Political Communication, Political Analysis, Political Behavior, and Social Science Quarterly.

Paul B. Freedman is Associate Professor in the Department of Politics at the University of Virginia.  His work has appeared in the American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics, Public Opinion Quarterly, Political Communication, Campaigns and Elections, and Slate. Since 2000, he has been an election analyst for ABC News in New York.

Kenneth M. Goldstein is Professor of Political Science at University of Wisconsin-Madison.  In addition to publishing widely in academic outlets, his reputation for unbiased and non-partisan analysis has made him a favorite source for the national news media.  He has appeared on numerous network and cable news broadcasts as well as being quoted extensively in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal.  He is currently a member of the ABC News Election Night Decision team.

Travis N. Ridout is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Washington State University in Pullman. His research on political campaigns and advertising has appeared in the American Journal of Political Science, Political Behavior, The Annual Review of Political Science and several other journals. He also has served as an election night consultant for CBS News.