Lectures / 21/09/2009 7:30 pm

Truth?

Politics Equals Culture. Election campaigns between advertising and diffamation.

As the campaign for the 2009 provincial and local elections in Upper Austria enters its hot phase, it is time to subject the style and the messages that are being made use of to scrutiny. Is campaign advertising objective or diffamatory? Informative or dehumanizing? What does the general track record of election campaign advertising in Austria’s Second Republic look like? What are the odds in favour of “bad campaigning”? What influence in terms of the overall political climate does significant campaign advertising have?

The run-up to elections almost ritualistically features a so-called “fair-play agreement” between the competing parties. Have such agreements ever made a difference? Did they ever preclude low blows or at least reduce their incidence? Did they ever contribute to a more objective campaign style?

Anton Pelinka reflects on these issues both as a political scientist and as a critical observer of today’s political life, which means that his lecture will also have topical relevance. Representatives of the parties competing in Upper Austria’s provincial elections will be invited to take part.  

In collaboration with Markierungen – Gespräche zur kulturellen Vielfalt