To further illustrate this point, recent Republican attack ads inviting viewers to "meet the real Ashwin Madia" have used altered photos of the candidate to make him appear noticeably darker: Attack ad's darkened images prompt questions.
And of course, darker equals scarier, more threatening... and less American. The darkened ads are obviously meant to evoke a visceral, negative response, preying on voters' fears and further driving home this racist idea that a darker Madia is somehow "not like us."
Here's Congressman Mike Honda's statement calling on the National Republican Congressional Committee to stop airing the incendiary ad:
Honda Condemns Incendiary NRCC Attack Ad against Ashwin MadiaAgain, here's the original report by local news station KARE 11: Attack ad's darkened images prompt questions. And here's the story from the Wall Street Journal: TV Ad Stirs Controversy in Minnesota House Race. View the original photos side-by-side with the doctored darkened photos: NRCC Crosses the Line in New Ad Against Madia. And here's video of the actual ad: Ashwin Madia: Running to Raise Taxes. That's racist!
CAPAC congressional members call on NRCC to pull ad
WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Congressman Mike Honda, chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), called on the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) to stop airing an incendiary television advertisement, which deliberately darkens the skin tone of Ashwin Madia, an Indian American running in Minnesota's 3rd Congressional District. The NRCC has been airing the advertisement on behalf of Republican candidate Erik Paulsen. Mr. Paulsen has refused to condemn the ad.
"We are calling on the National Republican Congressional Committee to stop using inflammatory scare tactics and to pull this attack ad against Ashwin Madia," said Honda. "Voters deserve to hear compelling arguments on behalf of congressional candidates, but this ad employs negative stereotyping that has no place in the public arena. It is clear that the American public has moved beyond this type of fear mongering. Erik Paulsen should join us in asking the NRCC to apologize, pull this advertisement immediately, and move on to talking about the real issues facing voters in Minnesota's 3rd Congressional District."
KARE-11, an NBC affiliate in the Twin Cities, first reported the story on Wednesday. In its coverage, KARE-11 interviewed two independent media experts, Professor Clay Steinman and Dean Alger, who provided analysis of the advertisement. According to Professor Steinman, Republicans darkened Madia's photograph in order to provoke "a kind of visceral, negative response." Alger, who systematically analyzed hundreds of campaign ads for a major election study he co-directed at Harvard University, concurred with Professor Steinman's analysis.
"This sort of unethical campaigning has no place in American politics, regardless of the race of the candidate, but I am especially troubled by these tactics because there are disproportionately few Asian American candidates in the first place," said Congressman David Wu. "As a veteran and an advocate for accessible higher education, Ashwin Madia is exactly the sort of leader that we need in the United States Congress."
"We need to judge people by the merits of their work and character," said Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono. "As we have seen in this historic election, these types of deceptive tactics, also aimed at Senator Barack Obama, have no place in this election. It is an insult to voters who want this election to focus on campaign issues. Ashwin Madia reflects the diversity, leadership and service we need in Congress."
