Question

Explain why politicians might resort to personal attacks in their campaign advertisements. How might using this type of argument benefit them?

Answer 1

People react to raw emotion. It's a cheap trick, but it's remarkably effective in drawing attention and in humiliating their opponent if there is any truth to what they are saying. It's pretty much another form of mudslinging in public.

Of course, it can also backfire horribly if people see it as mean-spirited and without merit or are just tired of all of the mudslinging in general. If a politician is smearing someone else without any real justification, that can end up damaging their image more than helping it and create a lot of sympathy for the other person, for example. Politics are rough.