Negative narratives in 1988 presidential campaign ads

Narrative polispots are mini‐stories that participate in two narrative structures simultaneously: the story being told in the ad (énoncé,) and the story being told by the ad (énunciation). The relationships existing between those two structures can affect voters’ positive or negative feelings about a campaign. This essay illustrates these ideas from presidential campaign ads used in 1988; conclusions about Campaign ‘88, the rhetorical aspects of negative ads, and the sociocultural dimensions of presidential campaigning generally are drawn.