Take a look at this video from Slate's David Roth about Spot Runner, an online low-cost ad production house. Spot Runner uses ad templates and a low-cost model to allow almost anyone to produce an advertisement - they charge only $499 per ad. 

It's an ingenious concept, but I wonder how it will affect politics. On the one hand, it allows people with limited financial resources to produce a professional advertisement, giving them greater access to the electorate. On its face, this is a good thing for our country, as it could further level-out the playing field in many local elections. On the other hand, having candidates choose ads from a preselected group of templates is a bit depressing. Some of the predictable choices for ads include "Defending Our Freedom" (Pro-Iraq War) and "Bring Them Home" (Anti-Iraq War).

I've previously written about how policy debates should be more nuanced than they are often portrayed to the American people. Most issues are complicated, and by dumbing-down the details of the debate, people are given less information and often vote for candidates without understanding the consequences of their policies. Binary, black and white portraits of the issues are convenient, but usually not helpful. They often times just serve to further polarize people, creating political gridlock in some cases and resentment in most cases. 

In sum, I think Spot Runner is an innovative idea and most likely net positive for our political system. As is usually the case, however, improvements in efficiency don't come without some negative side-effects. In this case, I think the proliferation of dumbed-down policy debates is one of these negative side-effects. 



(Hat Tip: AS)