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Hyperpartisan Palin Puts Country In Pickle

September 4, 2008

John McCain dominated the newscycle with his surprise selection of Sarah Palin as his V.P. pick. It was an extraordinary pick (extraordinarily bad that is) and in this post, I want to pick it apart a bit.

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Who is Sarah Palin? A Memo from Alaska

September 4, 2008

I watched Sarah Palin’s acceptance speech last night at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. I decided to find out what I could about her, as I know that the conventions are essentially political ads whose primary purpose is, more often than not, to plant a narrative/story in the mind of the public in order to inoculate voters against facts and accusations as the campaign unfolds.

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How Persuasive Are Political Ads?

September 3, 2008

My work on persuasion has two goals. To help good people to bring about positive change using the skills and strategies of persuasion; and to help good people protect themselves from these same skills. You can learn a lot from the persuasion professionals who design political ads. In my previous post on political ads, I talked about the formula they use, and how it begins with location. But wait, there’s more! That’s what this post is about.

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If you care about the future, get registered and vote!

September 1, 2008

It’s labor day, and I had planned to rest from my labors, and post my next post on Wednesday. But after several conversations today with a few of my younger friends (thanks Matt), I’m concerned that there are lots of people with an opinion on how this election should turn out, but they’re not in […]

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KSEN Radio’s Jerry Puffer Interviews Rick Kirschner

August 31, 2008

Here’s an interview from this past week with Shelby Montana radio host Jerry Puffer, the Puffman. His Show reaches Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, and north into Canada. That’s a big audience for a guy talking out of Shelby, with a population of 3000 people.
“The puffman” also does a variety of other things at the station like a show that helps listeners to swap things with other listeners, and he does the occasional commercial. He’s been in the radio business for 43 years.

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LearnToPersuade.com is now live!

August 28, 2008

My newest website, LearnToPersuade.com, is now online and live! I have a free gift waiting for you there. Listen free to my $49 one hour audio program on Dealing With People You Can’t Stand. You’ll learn what works and doesn’t work with pushy, negative, disruptive and vague people. PLUS a free course in persuasive communication, consisting of 14 two-minute tune-ups, delivered one every other week for six months, to help you improve your persuasive skills.

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How Persuasive are Political Ads?

August 28, 2008

We hate them. We rely on them. Because we believe them.

Today I’m going to talk about the persuasive structure of television ads for political campaigns, and their impact. Impact on whom? On myself, for starters. But in the bigger picture, the broader impact is what interests me most, and I’m eager to write about it. This is part one of a three part blog series on the media and politics.

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McCain Big Flip Flop Dishes Low Blows And Wins Backlash

August 26, 2008

The gist of the Democratic campaign is that this race is not about left vs right, liberal vs conservative, democrats vs republicans. It’s about the future vs the past, about uniting the country instead of dividing it. The gist of the Republican campaign is that McCain has the experience to lead. Well, yes, McCain has plenty of experience. Unfortunately, in a mud slinging game, much of McCain’s experience is the wrong kind. John McCain seems to have forgotten the lesson his momma surely must have taught him: People who live in glass houses (even if there are seven or eight of them) shouldn’t throw stones. McCain has enough dirt in his past to be concerned, because throwing stones just may draw voter attention to it.

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