Political Advertising Literacy (PAL)

The PAL Research Group

The PAL research group investigates how much U.S. voters know about political advertising, called political advertising literacy (PAL), and improve their knowledge to effectively cope with misleading political advertising. Comprised of advertising scholars and graduate students from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, the PAL group represents a practical approach to understanding how individuals process political messages as part of a larger media phenomenon. 

My Role as a Researcher

  • Qualitative: Conducted 25 virtual interviews with U.S. voters during Summer 2022 to gauge awareness, attitudes, and general knowledge of advertisements, messaging tactics, and laws pertaining to political advertising.
  • Quantitative: Implemented experimental survey to gauge U.S. voters’ awareness, attitudes, reception, and knowledge of political advertisements using Qualtrics.

My Role as a Graphic Designer

  • Created PAL research group logo for use on digital and printed materials.
  • Developed and executed Political Advertising Literacy website to showcase research initiative, resources, projects, news spotlights, and knowledge quiz, including graphic design and survey implementation.
  • Designed customized banners, infographics, slide deck, and graphics for website.
  • Maintain and monitor website activity and updates.

Presentations

Based on the qualitative part of the project, I presented the group's findings at the American Academy of Advertising 2023 annual conference in Denver, CO: “Understanding and Increasing Everyday Persuasion Knowledge about Political Advertising.” See news blurb on the Political Advertising Literacy website.                        

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