Come Sail Away

Media Obscured: Political Posters

Political posters, as the election slowly approaches, are everywhere. Even now, although I am of the age to vote, their messages fall on my deaf ears. Despite their seemingly bright colors and fetching slogans, the signs scattered along the highway and sidestreets blended right into the background from my childhood perspective.

“Hope for America”? This tells me virtually nothing about the candidate. Is it just me, or would a poster be more persuasive if it contained tagline or brief description of the candidate’s policy? If I can recall my High School history classes, Woodrow Wilson advertised that he would “Keep Us Out of the War”

The posters above barely contain more than a name. It seems to me that these posters achieve an alternate, unintentional purpose. Rather than sparking interest in that particular candidate, it simply sparks interest in the election. While the small margin of undecided voters may be swayed by the posters, those who have chosen a candidate will most likely more passionately support their chosen candidate.

Until recently, these poster have been ambient media. Media in the background that I subconciously shut out. As they have been brought to my attention with the upcoming election, I have now decided to deliberatlely ignore.

Call me closed-minded, but these are nothing more than propaganda. With the internet as vast as it is, one could fully research all potential presidential candidates and make a more sound decision.