Robocalls
Since the last presidential debate, there has been a significant resurgence of automated phone calls as a campaign tool. Although these “robocalls” have been used by many local and presidential campaigns in recent years, they are often seen as a method of desperation as their legitimacy and effectiveness is highly questionable. Although they will likely have very little impact in the grand scheme of things, the role of automated telephone campaigning should not be ignored.

Most notably, news networks have picked up on a number of highly negative calls disseminated by the McCain campaign, which seem to have been put into use directly following the October 15th debate. These calls utilize several of the main issues McCain has used been raising, including Bill Ayers, “socialistic” tax policies, and an alleged lack of experience. Because robocalls are relatively sheltered from the press in comparison to televised ads, they are able often take on a decidedly more negative tone. One recent call even goes so far as to falsely accuse Obama of denying care to babies. The call also references Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, and criticizes the entire party for being “too extreme for America”. To hear the call: http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/10/latest_mccain_robocall_alleges.php
Another call harkens back to the “Paris Hilton” ad; criticizing Obama for “spending just 20 minutes with economic advisers, but hours at a celebrity Hollywood fundraiser”. This is an attempt to undercut Obama’s advantage on economic issues, which largely accounts for his significant lead over the past several weeks. This call is meant to not only question Obama’s commitment to the economy, but to once again cast Obama as a celebrity. To listen to the call:
http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/10/new_robocalls_from_mccain_and.php
The Obama campaign, though often just as negative as McCain, has circulated only one robocall in many of the same states as the McCain calls. This call, which criticizes McCain’s negative calls, was likely devised as a response to the smears, meant to appeal to those who were annoyed by the calls.

Unlike television ads, Negative robocalls usually have little effect and often, in the words of Sarah Palin “irritate people who are just inundated”. A recent study has shown that phone calls neither mobilize nor convince people, and usually have little or no effect on public opinion in comparison with more personalized campaign methods. The average person is usually annoyed by a negative political call interrupting their daily life, especially considering the barrage of telemarketing calls that many Americans receive. The only benefit to these ads is their cheapness; robocalls can be employed at a very low cost to the campaign. This would be very appealing to a chronically underfunded McCain campaign, which on October 30th, started running robocalls in his home state of Arizona. Many have seen this as an act of desperation when McCain’s lead in his home state has narrowed to just 2 points.

While calls are shown to be ineffective, Obama has found a more effective alternative in texting.Obama is the first candidate to use texting for campaign purposes, and it could prove to be an incredibly effective mobilization method. Since people rarely receive texts from anybody not on their contacts list, a text message is generally not met with the same annoyance as a randomized call from a stranger. Also, the campaign uses texts more as a means to remind people to watch debates, vote, etc, than to deliver political messages. This could be a crucial measure in mobilizing young people, who make the most avid use of text-messaging.

I predict that Obama will actually benefit from this wave of robocalls; attacking obama in this manner is likely a method of last resort for an underfunded campaidn. However, considering the unpredictable nature of not only this election but all American elections, we will not know for sure until the numbers come in on election day.



For Further Reading:


Sargent, Greg. 2008. "Latest McCain Robocall Alleges That Obama Denied Babies Medical Care". Talking Points Memo. retreived from:
http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/10/latest_mccain_robocall_alleges.php
november 1st, 2008


Sargent, Greg. 2008. "New Robocalls From McCain Campaign And RNC Slam Obama's Patriotism, Charge He Put "Hollywood Above America" ". Talking Points Memo. retreived from:
http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/10/new_robocalls_from_mccain_and.php
november 1st, 2008


Manjoo, Farhad. 2008. "Texts You can Beleive in " Slate. retreived from: http://www.slate.com/id/2203146/ november 1st, 2008


Wilson, Reid. 2008. "McCain Launches Defensive Robocalls" Arizona Capitol Times. retreived from: http://www.azcapitoltimes.com/story.cfm?id=9716 november 1st, 2008