MichMash: How To Watch Campaign Ads Responsibly

Cheyna Roth and Jake Neher talk with Riley Beggin of Bridge Magazine’s Truth Squad.

WDET Digital

The November election is fast approaching. And that means candidates, ballot campaigns, and other political organizations are pouring money into campaign ads.

Soon we will be inundated with candidates’ faces, boasts of their career accomplishments, their rivals’ pitfalls, and — inevitably — some dubious claims about those things.

These can be fraught times for politics and voters and it’s tough to keep up with all of the rhetoric. Fortunately for us, there are capable professionals who do much of the work for all of us.

As part of their weekly series MichMash, Cheyna Roth and Jake Neher talk with Riley Beggin of Bridge Magazine’s Truth Squad about how to watch responsibly.

Click on the audio player above to hear that conversation.

Some takeaways…

1) Apparently, candidates have done some sort of market research and determined voters will respond positively to images of them driving a car.

2) Candidates are leaving it up to their respective parties to launch attack ads on their opponents.

3) Seek out fact checks of these ads, such as those from Bridge Magazine’s Truth Squad.

Authors

  • Cheyna has interned with Michigan Radio and freelanced for WKAR public radio in Lansing. She's also done some online freelancing and worked on documentary films.
  • Jake Neher is senior producer for Detroit Today and host of MichMash for 101.9 WDET. He previously reported on the Michigan Legislature for the Michigan Public Radio Network.