hypnolibertarian

One of the things I want to do on this blog is answer questions on a regular
basis.  I’m going to take some questions for the past week or so, and then
maybe do the rest another time (or answer more questions).  This, of course,
is a shameless way to cater to my readers and keep them coming back.

Question 1: “But there seems to be one area of TV advertising which goes
completely against this grain, and I am curious to know why. I speak of
commercials against drunk driving, smoking, drugs, bullying, etc. A common
understanding among hypnotherapists is that creating negative feelings in
order to sway the subject away from smoking is risky and not as effective as
creating positive feelings about being a healthy non-smoker. Why then do so
many ads for our own good focus so intently on creating negative feelings? “

First of all, I point to the post on Negative Campaigning.  Those who are
“motivated away” from things will be reached by this kind of association.
Second, to be frank, many of these commercials are as much for those in the
business as for those in the public, making themselves look good.  Such
people are often motivated negatively: seeing the horrible hunger and
squalor or having a relative die due to lung cancer or a drunk driver.
There is a close to unbearable desire to have the people to whom they
communicate share their anguish.  So public service announcements are often
done negatively, and I don’t see this changing.

Question 2: “Will you venture to hypothesize that someone in the catbird
seat of the Democratic Convention planned the “O-BA-MAH” chants, or their
counterpart at the Republican Convention orchestrated the “U-S-A” chants?”

Yes, of course.  Specifically (having been involved in a campaign or two)
there are specific media political consultants who make this their business,
just as there are ad agencies and research organizations that make the same
thing *their* business.  In general, the campaign honchos say what they
want, the media experts come back with storyboards and why they will work,
then the commercial gets approved.  The key here is “why they will work;”
they explain what they are doing.

Question 3: “What about unintentional hypnosis?”  Unintentional hypnosis is
a fact of life; the kinds of techniques I describe, particularly the raising
of emotional levels, happens all the time in real life.  Our best hypnotists
are our parents, but teachers and peers are good at that too.  This is a
blog on hypnosis and politics, so unintentional hypnosis tends to not come
into this discussion, but I may well take a tangent or two at times into
this rich field.

Please keep those questions coming!