Evolution of political advertising in the communication space of Ukraine

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Ivan Franko National University

Evolution of political advertising in the communication space of Ukraine

Nataliia Voitovych

Abstract

Society always tries to be as informed as possible, especially if it concerns the political sphere. In the pre-election period, when the level of political activity increases, the information space becomes the field of their power struggle. The media have always been a kind of reference point in choosing the political sympathies of the addressees, and the content of the media shaped the attitude of these addressees toward reality. Since the public's responsibility for its political choices is high, the audience must always identify political advertising in any form.

Political advertising went from its birth to an active phase of development in a span of almost 30 years. If at the end of the 20th century, we saw advertising only in the press, on television and radio, then at the beginning of the 21st century it is actively spreading in literature, on external elements, and with the development of the Internet - in social networks.

The study analyzed political advertising and political campaigning from 1991 to the last presidential elections and developed a periodization based on the elections of the President of Ukraine.

The emergence of political advertising took place in the late 1990s of the 20th century. Today, in the communication space of Ukraine, there is high-quality political advertising that meets the requirements of current legislation and relevant ethical standards. Along with this, we have the existence of political “jeansa” (hidden advertising), which violates journalistic and ethical standards.

Political advertising has constantly evolved and acquired new forms related to the development of technology, information space, and society's demands. During its development, it went through several stages and transformations: from the unsuccessful application of postSoviet and Russian experience to the application of political technologies in the Telegram social network.

The evolutionary period continues to this day. Modern communication technologies will help push political advertising to a new stage of development.

Key words: audience, mass media, electoral law, political campaigning, political hit piece (“jeansa”), political advertising, social communication, typology of political advertising, periodization of political advertising.

Наталія Войтович

Еволюція політичної реклами в комунікаційному просторі України

Анотація

political advertising addresse

Суспільство завжди намагається бути максимально проінформованим, особливо, якщо це стосується політичної сфери. У передвиборний період, коли рівень політичної активності політиків зростає, інформаційний простір стає полем їхньої боротьби за владу. Медіа завжди були своєрідним орієнтиром у виборі політичних симпатій адресатів, а контент медіа формував ставлення цих адресатів до дійсності. Оскільки відповідальність суспільства за свій політичний вибір є високою, важливо, щоб аудиторія завжди ідентифікувала політичну рекламу у будь-якому вигляді.

Впродовж майже 30 років політична реклама пройшла шлях від зародження до активної фази розвитку. Якщо наприкінці ХХ століття ми бачили рекламу лише в пресі, на телебаченні та радіо, то на початку ХХІ століття вона активно поширюється в літературі, на зовнішніх елементах, а з розвитком Інтернету - і в соціальних мережах.

У дослідженні проаналізовано політичну рекламу та політичну агітацію від 1991 року до крайніх президентських виборів та розроблено періодизацію, яка базується на виборах Президента України. Аналіз контенту тематичних подач у медіа дав змогу виокремити сім етапів становлення та розвитку політичної реклами.

Зародження політичної реклами відбулося у кінці 1990 років ХХ століття. Нині в комунікаційному просторі України існує якісна політична реклама, яка відповідає вимогам чинного законодавства та відповідним етичним стандартам. Водночас маємо існування й політичної “джинси” (прихована реклама), яка порушує журналістські та етичні стандарти.

Політична реклама постійно еволюціонувала й набувала нових форм, пов'язаних із розвитком технологій, інформаційного простору та запитами суспільства. У період свого розвитку вона пройшла кілька стадій і трансформацій: від невдалого застосування пострадянського та російського досвіду до застосування політтехнологій у мережі Telegram.

Еволюційний період політичної реклами триває і досі. Сучасні комунікаційні технології допоможуть вивести політичну рекламу на новий етап розвитку.

Ключові слова: аудиторія, масмедіа, виборче законодавство, політична агітація, політична “джинса”, політична реклама, соціальна комунікація, типологія політичної реклами, періодизація політичної реклами.

Introduction

As an important component of pre-election political campaigns, political advertising in Ukraine is constantly developing and changing. It passed through considerable transformations from the first days of Ukraine's independence up to this day. This was caused by changes in Legislation and sociopolitical changes in society.

The current state of political advertising is closely related to the democratic stage of development in Ukraine. It should also be noted that political advertising in the information space is an integral part of society's political culture. This close relationship can be observed during election campaigns. Therefore, it is necessary to take into account the level of the electorate's political culture, as well as political (national) traditions and the level of education of voters, when creating political advertising.

The relevance of the evolution of political advertising study in the communication space of Ukraine is determined by the mass media's place, role, and functions. Mass media is a kind of reference point in choosing the audiences political sympathies, and media content addressed to the audience shapes the audience's attitude to reality. We can talk about a certain influence of political advertising on the electorate, which further determines the relevance of the topic.

The purpose of the study is to specify the stages of the development of political advertising in the Ukrainian social and communication space. The goal determines the setting of relevant tasks: research on the development of political advertising in Ukraine over the course of 30 years; determining the periodization of political advertising in Ukraine; creating a typology of political advertising and distinguishing its types.

Discussion

International and Ukrainian scientists have been researching the emergence and development of political advertising for many years. Ukrainian researcher H. Pocheptsov pays the most attention to this issue. In his works “The image of the leader” [14], “Building an Image as Communicative Programming” [15], “Political Advertising of Ukraine: Winning or Losing Strategies” [13], “Profession of Image Maker” [16], the scientist considers political advertising as a component of election campaigns and finds out their influence on potential voters. Researcher V. Bebyk in his writings “How to make a name in politics” [2], “Political marketing and management in a democratic society” [4], “How to become popular, win elections and stay on the political Olympus: (sociology and technology political struggle)” [3] focuses attention on pre-election technologies. The monograph of V. Bebyk “Basic principles of political science: history, theory, methodology, practice” [5] and the joint work of V. Bebyk, M. Holovaty, V. Rebkalo “Political culture of modern youth” [6] are also worthy of attention. T. Dzhiga in his work “Political advertising in Ukraine” [11] examines television political advertising. However, these studies have not paid enough attention to the typology and evolution of political advertising.

Results

Analyzing the development of political advertising in the Ukrainian information space, we must note that the appearance of this type of political communication does not date back to the beginning of Ukraine's independence, i. e. 1991, but to approximately the end of the nineties. On July 5, 1991, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of the Ukrainian SSR Leonid Kravchuk signed the Law of Ukraine “On Elections of the President of Ukraine”, and on November 18, 1993, now the President of Ukraine Leonid Kravchuk signed the Law of Ukraine “On Elections of People's Deputies of Ukraine”. Both Laws lost their relevance in 1999 and 1997, respectively. The first Ukrainian laws regarding the election process dealt exclusively with political campaigning. However, during the years of independence, political campaigning evolved and the concept of political advertising appeared. Over the course of two decades, it has changed, improved, and received new directions with the involvement of new technologies. In the dissertation study “Legal, ethical and socio-psychological aspects of political advertising as a component of social communications” we singled out several features and proposed a periodization and typology of political advertising in pre-election campaigns, by analyzing the pre-election campaigns of the presidents of Ukraine since the gain of independence to the present day.

“1991 - proto-advertisement. Development of Ukrainian legislation. First elections.

1994-1999 - the first televised debates of candidates for the post of President of Ukraine. The birth of political advertising. Application of post-Soviet and Russian experience in creating political advertising.

1999-2004 - use of anti-advertising in political campaigns, the emergence of political hidden advertising (political jeansa).

2004-2010 - development of anti- and counter-advertising. The phenomenon of political advertising in literature.

2010-2014 - the growth of hidden political advertising, the introduction of false starts. Active use of not only traditional media but also outdoor advertising.

2014-2019 - strengthening of black PR, use of social networks as a source of information, and political advertising on social networks.

2019 - the use of new technologies, in particular targeted advertising, the use of cinematography as a type of political advertising” [10].

The first Ukrainian presidential elections took place on December 1, 1991. Leonid Kravchuk won the majority, over 60 %, of the votes. There was no political advertising in 1991. Only political campaigning is used, without the active involvement of mass media. Materials that encourage the population to go to vote are created on television and in the press. The first Ukrainian presidential elections were finished in one round. However, we can talk about a certain confrontation between the two candidates - the communist Leonid Kravchuk and the Ukrainian national democrat Vyacheslav Chornovil. As scientist N. Yakovleva notes, based on the research of Yu. Mytsik and O. Bazhan, “in 1991, L. Kravchuk proposed the political program “New Ukraine”, which was based on the principle of the five “D”: “Statehood. Democracy. Welfare. Spirituality. Trust” (“Державність. Демократія. Добробут. Духовність. Довіра”). The main image positioning of L. Kravchuk in these elections was the creation of the image of a fighter for the independence of Ukraine, and accordingly, the only politician capable of taking responsibility for the development of the state” [17]. Leonid Kravchuk's team constantly organized meetings between the candidate and the population. They took place in a friendly atmosphere and with a “close to the people” image, especially if the meetings took place in city markets. The election campaign of Vyacheslav Chornovil took place in a simpler manner. He also spoke to voters, gathering a sizeable audience, according to his team. However, this was not enough to win.

The second presidential election was held in 1994. During this period, there was also no question of creating political advertising. There were information materials about the registration of presidential candidates, their meetings, and pre-election activities in the mass media. It should be noted that the second elections were early. It was caused by the protests of miners whose salaries were delayed. Parliament decided to announce early elections. In the first round, Leonid Kravchuk (38.36 %) and Leonid Kuchma (31.17 %) received the most votes [1].

Leonid Kravchuk's 1994 election campaign was almost identical to the 1991 campaign - at all meetings, Kravchuk spread the idea that the independence of our state is the main achievement, that Ukraine is a European state, and that we should occupy a prominent place in Europe.

Leonid Kuchma's team was building a slightly different, more pro-Russian direction of state development. The candidate mentioned the economic situation of the state and promised a decent life for the people and the renewal of economic ties with Russia. The slogan on the posters was: order, work, decency.

Agitational sheets, which were pasted in cities and villages as well as meetings with people were the main source of communication for both candidates' pre-election campaigns.

In 1994, the first televised debates of candidates for the post of President of Ukraine took place.

In the presidential campaign of 1994, we still don't see distinct political technologies. The genesis of political advertising and initial attempts at political technologies can be traced back to the period of the 1998 parliamentary elections. It is at this time that political technologists begin to actively use the media sphere. Since there is no Ukrainian experience yet, political election campaigns are being modeled using political campaigning and the first examples of political advertising from the Russian experience. However, most of the campaigns failed because the technologists did not take into account the peculiarities of the political culture of the Ukrainian population.

The 1999 presidential election of Ukraine can be characterized as a vote not “for” but “against” a candidate. It was during the third presidential election that Ukrainians made a choice without a choice. The rating of the at the time President Leonid Kuchma was quite low. Communist Petro Symonenko and Leonid Kuchma made it to the second round. Choosing between the current president and a communist future, the population voted for stability. However, it was during this election campaign that antiadvertising and the method of intimidation, in our case the communist past, were used for the first time.

Also, during the 1999 election campaign, jeansa appeared in the mass media for the first time. However, then it resembled an administrative resource. Ordered materials dominated the mass media field. Journalists created publications exclusively about the good deeds of President Kuchma, the information on television news was aimed only at the positive image of the leader of the state. The all-Ukrainian newspaper with the largest circulation “Fakty” was most favorable to the current president. In addition to laudatory materials about Leonid Kuchma, excerpts from his upcoming book “By Way of Honor” are published in the pre-election period. As for anti-advertising, several materials against the Communist Symonenko were published in the columns of the “Fakty” newspaper, in which readers were reminded of the terrible times of communist rule.

In the 2004 elections, there was a confrontation between two candidates - Viktor Yushchenko and Viktor Yanukovych. The biographical data of both candidates were actively used in pre-election campaigns. Viktor Yanukovych's sore spot was a criminal record, and Viktor Yushchenko's was an “American” wife. The media created informational occasions around these topics. Until that point, biographies had not played such an important role in the creation of political advertising or campaigning. In addition, it is worth noting that this is the first election where not only the candidates for the post of President but also their families appear in the media space. During this period, anti-advertisement continues to develop in our country, but counter-advertisement appears along with it.

If we analyze the journalistic materials published during the pre-election campaign, we can see that counter-propaganda directions, anti-advertising and hidden advertising were used during the 2004 presidential pre-election campaign.

During 2006-2007, political advertising as a phenomenon appears in the literature. Ukrainian printed editions - books by Yuri Rogoza “Kill Yulia”, Volodymyr Pishko “You-Julia: Wreaths of Sonnets”, Maria Matios “Mr. and Mrs. Yu-Ko in the ukr's country” and Andriy Kokotyukha “Yuriy Lutsenko. Field commander” - contain elements of political advertising. This can be seen both in the texts and in the visual design of the covers. Literature, which primarily performs aesthetic and educational functions, in this case, served as a means of political advertising.

By 2010, V. Yushchenko had practically lost the support of the electorate, and the main candidates for the presidential seat were Yulia Tymoshenko and again Viktor Yanukovych. During this period, the amount of hidden political advertising increases significantly. Long before the start of the election campaign, an advertisement appears on television, which cannot be characterized as political advertising and, even more so, as political campaigning. The whole country just sees commercials that talk about a mysterious SHE who “works!”. Later, during the official start of the election campaign, a continuation of the commercial appears on television, which turns into a political advertisement. Since “She works! She is Ukraine. Yulia Tymoshenko” (YouTube). Advertising that appeared long before the re-election campaign and was not identified as political advertising should legally be considered ordinary advertising, although it is not. Therefore, placing such an advertisement can be considered a false start of the election campaign. So a false start is the placement of political advertising without marking and clear signs of such advertising in the mass media long before the official start of the election campaign.

During this period, Viktor Yanukovych's team created an advertisement that was placed even on a day of political silence - “Ukraine for the people!”.

During the 2010 election campaign, outdoor advertising was actively used, in particular in the form of billboards. Political advertising on external media is not marked as political and is placed both during the election campaign and long before it. This method of advertising was popular not only among presidential candidates but also among political parties. Unmarked political advertising on billboards long before the start of the election campaign and on the day of silence was used during the 2019 elections.

Early elections in 2014 had their own peculiarities. Hidden political advertising (jeansa) remains at the peak of its popularity among politicians, as evidenced by constant mass media monitoring by the Institute of Mass Information. Other public organizations, such as the “Lviv Press Club”, join MII. Based on their research, a material was published in September 2014 that showed rather sad statistics. “In preelection September, all print and electronic media - some more, some less - posted materials with signs of ordering. That is, the March trend was repeated when the presidential elections were approaching in the country. This time, experts recorded the highest percentage of “jeansa” among the four printed editions in “High Castle” and “Town Hall” - 37.50 % and 23.53 %, respectively. The third indicator is at “Express” - 6.67 %, and the lowest - at “Lvivska post” - 5.88 %. As a result, the average percentage of publications with signs of ordering in Lviv print mass media in September was 18.46 %. Compared to printed media, the percentage of “jeansa” in online media is twice as high - 38.10 %. The ZIK agency is in the lead (57.14 %), Zaxid.net (38.10 %) is in second place, Vgolos and Gal-info (28.57 % each) are in third place, with the same indicators” [12].

The election campaign to the Verkhovna Rada in 2015 was interesting and unusual. During this campaign, MII recorded many violations and placement of hidden political advertisements in the media. In addition, during this period the so-called black PR appeared. Mayor of Kyiv Vitaliy Klitschko and Mayor of Lviv Andriy Sadovy were the most affected by this technology.

“2019 will go down in the history of Ukraine as the year with the largest number of candidates for the post of President of Ukraine - 44 applicants. As reported on the UNIAN website.

February 4, 2019: “The acceptance of documents for the registration of candidates for the presidential elections has ended. Of the 89 people who applied, 17 did so on the last day. This is an absolute record since 1991. The previous record for the number of candidates was set in 2004. Then the CEC registered 26 people, of which 2 people later dropped out” [8].

As stated in the report “Adherence to journalistic standards during political elections”, at the 3rd International Scientific Conference of students and doctoral students “Young Journalism”, held at the Institute of Polonistics and Journalism of the University of Rzeszow on April 3, 2019, many manipulation technologies were used and several new were created: fakes, fake sociology, black PR, manipulation of headlines/numbers/slogans, false start of the election campaign, creation of custom materials (jeansa), violation of the “day of silence” and involvement of media owners [18].

The best in the 2019 presidential campaign, new technologies used by V. Zelenskyi's team.

A new technology used in the 2019 election was targeted advertising. The very term and technique used in such advertising have been known for a long time. However, until the last presidential election, it was used only in commercial advertising.

The principle used in the distribution of political advertising was the same as in the distribution of commercial advertising. If a user of social networks even once went to a site where V. Zelenskyi or another politician was discussed or liked a post, he automatically fell into the field of view of targeted advertising.

Since 2014, social media has become a source of information for audiences and journalists. Over time, new technologies also started to be used by politicians. “Today, almost every candidate for a political position is registered in social networks, and PR technologists conduct pre-election campaigning through his account. Young politicians feel a little better and freer in this area because they are very familiar with social networks. Politicians of the old generation look somewhat worse in social networks” [7]. However, Zelensky's team has gone far ahead in the application of new technologies. In 2019, they began to conduct a political campaign through the Telegram network, which is popular among young people, thus gaining the support of young people.

“Another method of manipulation is the so-called false start. Candidates start political advertising long before the official start of the election campaign. Although the campaign officially launched in January 2019, the ads were up long before that. In almost every city of Ukraine, we learned about the “New Course” of Yulia Volodymyrivna Tymoshenko from the boards; that “the President is a servant of the people”; what “Offensive 2019” awaits us, etc. Legally, the law was not violated, but everyone understood that the political race had begun.

Candidates do not shy away from any methods during election campaigns. In January 2019, boards appeared in the cities of Ukraine - “I guarantee! Remove dust from your home. Oleksandr Shevchenko”. The team of presidential candidate Oleksandr Shevchenko was asked to remove the word “dust”, as many people associate it with the current president. However, the politician argued: “Our home is Ukraine. Think about it, isn't it time for us to put things in order here? Do dust and powder always have to be in our home?” Oleksandr Shevchenko, the People's Deputy of Ukraine, the winner of the presidential primaries of the Ukrainian People's Party of Ukraine, said this on the air of the “Relevant Interview” program on the “Ternopil 1” TV channel. In this way, he explained what the slogan “Remove dust from our home” means. And the fact that “dust” is associated with the current president is not his fault” [9].

The 2019 presidential election is characterized by a chain of legal and ethical violations. Besides that, it tested new technologies that were successfully applied during the 2020 election campaign.

Conclusions

In modern society, political advertising occupies a prominent place in the social and communication space. No pre-election campaign is complete without the creation and distribution of political advertising in the mass media. This is how political communication takes place. By consuming political advertising, the audience forms an opinion about a political candidate. On the other end, mass media create certain stereotypes using political myths, symbols, and images. It is these elements in political advertising that shape the choice of the electorate.

In the communication space of Ukraine, political campaigning and political advertising exist in parallel. The birth and development of political advertising began in the 90s of the 20th century. New types of political advertising are formed and developed, such as political jeansa (hidden political advertising), antiadvertising, counter-advertising, black PR, and targeted political advertising on the Internet. In addition to traditional media, literature and cinematography are used for political advertising. With the development of social communications, significant changes are taking place in the creation and promotion of political advertising.

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