Fanning the Flames: The Freedom Project Blog

11.02.2006

If I See One More Negative Campaign Ad...

By Shawn Healy
Actually, I don't have much of a problem with negative advertising, mostly because it's effective and supported by the First Amendment. Although campaign finance laws have muddied the picture, political speech is afforded strict scrutiny by our courts, for the First Amendment was drafted specifically for this purpose.

It is in this context that I view the recent uproar over an ad that ran in the Tennessee Senate race connecting Rep. Harold Ford, an African-American, with a white woman at a Playboy party. It was attacked immediately from all directions, including his opponent, Republican Bob Corker. The sponsor of the spot, the Republican National Committee, pulled it shortly thereafter.

Steve Chapman is right on in his argument that levity is needed in a campaign lacking in creativity, where candidates either present themselves as choir boys or tar and feather their opponents as common criminals who steal from the public coffer. In an election season where we are once again forced to choose between the lesser of two evils (if we choose at all), a fictional candidate, Josh Jennings, stands as an appealing alternative. Check out these campaign commercials starring Mike Mauloff and co-created and edited by Nathan Gotsch. Should we send him to Congress or continue his service as a sandwich artist?

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SHAWN HEALY

Managing Director

McCormick Freedom Project

Shawn is responsible for overseeing and managing the operations associated with the McCormick Freedom Project. Additionally, he serves as the in house content expert and voice of museum through public speaking and original scholarship. Before joining the Freedom Project, he taught American Government, Economics, American History, and Chicago History at Community High School in West Chicago, IL and Sheboygan North High School in Wisconsin.

Shawn is a doctoral candidate within the Political Science Department at the University of Illinois at Chicago where he received his MA in Political Science. He is a 2001 James Madison Fellow from the State of Wisconsin and holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, History, and Secondary Education from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

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About Fanning the Flames and the McCormick Freedom Project


Fanning the Flames is a blog of the McCormick Freedom Project, which was started in 2006 by museum managing director Shawn Healy. The blog highlights the news of the day, in hopes of engaging readers in dialogue about freedom issues. Any views or opinions expressed on this blog represent those of the writers alone and do not represent an official opinion of the McCormick Freedom Project.



Founded in 2005, the McCormick Freedom Project is part of the McCormick Foundation. The Freedom Project’s mission is to enable informed and engaged participation in our democracy by demonstrating the relevance of the First Amendment and the role it plays in the ongoing struggle to define and defend freedom. The museum offers programs and resources for teachers, students, and the general public.


First Amendment journalism initiative


The Freedom Project recently launched a new reporting initiative with professional journalists Tim McNulty and Jamie Loo. The goal is to expand and promote the benefits of lifelong civic engagement among citizens of all ages, through original reporting, commentary and news aggregation on First Amendment and freedom issues. Please visit the McCormick Freedom Project's news Web site, The Post-Exchange at