The federal government is sponsoring a series of new ads explaining the Medicare reforms signed into law by President Bush. The ads also seem designed to defuse fears some of those on Medicare might have about the reforms. On the one hand, this sort of public service announcement probably does serve the useful purpose of educating Medicare beneficiaries about potential changes in their coverage, benefits, etc. On the other hand, is it wrong to suspect that the ad campaign might have political motivations as well? After all, I would assume it is in the Bush Administration’s political interest to assuage the concerns of politically active seniors. Just a thought.
UPDATE: Am I making a fuss about nothing? I don’t think so (both because I don’t think I made much of a fuss, and because there is a real issue here). Just because an ad serves two purposes — one public and one political — does not mean it’s wrong to point out the political. The bottom line is that this sort of public education translates into a substantial institutional advantage for incumbent politicians, and insofar as one may believe the current system gives too much of an incumbent advantage, how such ads are produced and paid for is worth reconsidering. The alternative is not necessarily a less-informed public, but a system in which incumbents must bear more of the burden of informing their constituents about the reasons why they should be reelected.
Comments are closed.