Backlash over targeted campaign ads

It’s called “microtargeting” and for political campaigns, it means taking in-real-life information about you, like what Congressional district you live in, what credit card you use and what charities you donate to—and using that to put the relevant political ads on your computer or mobile screen. But, as campaigns line up to use the strategy this election cycle, they’re finding out that voters just don’t like it. A study from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania shows that 86 percent of respondents did not want political ads targeted to them. Professor Joseph Turow of the Annenberg School said in the New York Times, “The overall sense is that there is a real discontent about this. You have a real disjuncture between the American public and the campaigns that are on a trajectory to increase it.”

And yet, targeted ads have been largely successful in other areas, commanding higher ad rates and delivering better returns. However, in the realm of politics, targeted ads, particularly on Facebook, might not work as well. Kate Kaye of ClickZ reports that of those asked, 70 percent said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate if they found out a campaign targeted ads to friends of people who “like” a candidate. Fifty percent said they would be “a lot” less likely. Turow told Marketplace reporter Nancy Marshall-Genzer, “People don’t like to be tracked. People are upset by the idea that they’re being followed. They don’t want the political process to be managed in the way that this tailoring suggests it is being managed.” However, there’s always a chance that people who see targeted ads will not be aware that they were tracked at all, and will show an interest in the ads anyhow.

• Voters Say They Are Wary of Ads Made Just for Them (New York Times)

• Democratic Firm Ties Voter Data to Facebook Friends (ClickZ)

• Americans Say No to Popular Political Facebook Ad Targeting (ClickZ)

• Online political ads: Effective or creepy? (Marketplace)

• Tailored online ads for political candidates could backfire, survey suggests (GigaOm)