John Geer on the Web

If you are one of those Americans who cringe every time they see a negative political ad on television, John G. Geer is not your cup of tea. Geer, a Vanderbilt University political scientist, has set out to challenge the widely held belief that attack ads and negative campaigns are destroying democracy. Quite the opposite, he argues in his provocative new book: Negativity is good for you and for the political system.Geer believes that democracy is strengthened by vigorous debate and asserts that negative ads contribute to, rather than detract from, that dialogue. His conclusions will surprise those who have lamented what seems to be the growing trend toward negativity. He confirms that negativity is on the rise -- the 2004 campaign was the most negative of the past four decades -- but from there he parts company with the hand-wringers... more