Lyckliga dagar åt alla? Finländsk partireklam i televisionen under 1990-talet

Finnish election campaigning changed significantly in the 1990's. Most important was the authorization of televised political advertising. This article studies the content of spot ads broadcast during the parliamentary election campaigns of the 1990's. First, the article compares Finnish with foreign televised political spot ads and shows that Finnish ads differ from foreign ads in three respects: 1) the emphasis is on image rather than issues; 2) explicit attacks on opponents are absent; and 3) the production techniques are used in a more varied manner. Second, the article conducts a close reading of the Finnish parties' spot ads showing that the parties were ambivalent about their advertising strategies in three ways: 1) whether to cling to a traditional "party logic" or adjust to modern "media logic" in devising the spot ads; 2) whether to appeal to the parties' traditional hardcore voters or attract a new strata of voters; and 3) whether, in a political culture where coalition governments are the norm, parties should "go negative" in the fight for votes or behave as potential coalition partners.