'A risk'
[Excelsior, Mexico]
Die Presse, Austria
Mudslinging
American-Style
"Smear campaigns are
time-honored traditions in U.S. election campaigns. But one must take care:
They have been known to backfire."
By Eva Male
Translated By Ulf Behncke
February 27, 2008
Austria -
Die Presse - Original Article (German)
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A 'diplomatic' mission: Senator Barack Obama dons
the garb of a Somali elder during a visit near the Somali border in Kenya
in 2006.
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Smear campaigns
are time-honored traditions in U.S. election campaigns. But one must take care:
They have been known to backfire.
The longer the campaign wares on and the more
heated it becomes, the more mud candidates are going to throw at one another,
occasionally actively egged-on by the media. That's what we are currently
experiencing in the United States, where former First Lady Hillary Clinton must
fear for her campaign for the nomination after the next big primaries in Ohio
and Texas.
Clinton accused her challenger Barack Obama
of inexperience in foreign policy, by indirectly comparing him to incumbent
President George W. Bush. The fact that her campaign team circulated photos of
Obama wearing traditional African garb - taken during a visit to Kenya - is
being evaluated as racist and divisive. Just a few weeks ago, Hillary’s attack
dog Bill barked vigorously at Obama. Meanwhile, Republican candidate John
McCain was charged on the front page of The New York Times with having
an affair with a lobbyist 
.
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
Ruthless tactics
like these happen in U.S. election
campaigns all the time. But they can backfire and earn sympathy for the
attacked candidate. Surveys show that voters,
especially the young, reject negative campaigning. And this is precisely what
is likely to benefit Obama, who openly admits his own mistakes and calmly
parries all attacks.
eva.male@diepresse.com
CLICK HERE FOR GERMAN
VERSION
[Posted by WORLDMEETS.US February 29, 10:05Am]
