Politics is perception, an old saying goes.

Nowhere is this saying more true and apt than in Philippine politics where perception is almost everything.  And in Philippine politics, the war on perception is normally waged through mass media and during elections, through political advertisements. 

The inevitable role of mass media in politics, and modern political campaigns cannot be denied. In fact, a lot of studies show that political candidates have depended heavily on both electronic and print media channels to send their messages across voters. The reason why critics often complain that candidates don’t even wage their campaigns on issues anymore but instead rely on professional media consultants to package them and sell them like any other product.

In a study (Farha and Hamdar 2008) conducted, the researchers noted that political advertisements since these are not everyday occurrences, generate a unique level of attentiveness and are more efficient message transmitters than news stories.  Since repetition plays a key role in learning, constant repetition of political advertisements inculcates specific messages helping form either positive perception for the candidate controlling the ads.

A study looking at the impact of political ads in the 2004 and 2007 elections shows that political ads “contributed a lot” to the result of these elections. The study was conducted by a group of experts, including Pulse Asia  Chief Research fellow Dr. Ana Tabunda. The study’s findings reveal that political ads serve as a source of information for first-time voters and a gauge of sincerity on the other hand for older voters. 

No other presidentiable has capitalized on this fact more than Manny Villar.