Big Brother Is Watching!

[JackLuis]

Political billboards are now scanning your face for your reactions

2016 presidential candidates have a new option in their quest to sway voters. “Neuropolitics” is the attempt to read your mind by scanning facial expressions and feeding them into an algorithm. Biofeedback—including heart rate, eye movements, and skin conditions—can also be captured and used for political purposes and, perhaps one day, for government purposes.

The New York Times describes a recent example in Mexico City, where a Congressional candidate hired a company to deploy a digital billboard with a hidden camera. The billboard advertised for the candidate, but also scanned faces so the campaign could analyze facial expressions and tweak their message.

The technology has been used by politicians in several other countries, including Mexico, Poland, Colombia, and Turkey. The “taboo” that once characterized its use in the U.S. could vanish in the 2016 elections.

However, academics are accusing neuromarketers of peddling junk science.

“For the most part, I think that companies selling neuroscience-based market research tools are taking advantage of people’s natural tendency to think that measurements of the brain are somehow more ‘real’ than measurements of behavior,” said Russell Poldrack, a psychology professor at Stanford University.

Nonetheless, those eager to gain the power and influence that comes with being an elected official won’t let academic skepticism get in the way. They say that brain waves, facial expressions and neurobiology give true insight into a voter’s feelings and opinions. Many voters are reluctant to say how they feel about a candidate, but campaigns feel they should be able to get around the voter’s choice to keep their thoughts to themselves.

 

[phrodeau]

All right, whenever I see a political billboard, I'm picking my nose.

 

[midwestyankee]

All right, whenever I see a political billboard, I'm picking my nose.

Might I suggest using your longest finger, too?

 

[KingOrfeo]

ISTM that if this stuff actually worked, the commercial advertising industry would have gotten into it long, long before the political advertising industry.

 

[midwestyankee]

ISTM that if this stuff actually worked, the commercial advertising industry would have gotten into it long, long before the political advertising industry.

The difference is that in commercial advertising, eventually the ad agency is called to account for the effectiveness of their campaigns. Not so in political campaigns, where it seems that there's always too much money chasing too few advertising resources.

 

[JackLuis]

ISTM that if this stuff actually worked, the commercial advertising industry would have gotten into it long, long before the political advertising industry.

Read the second quoted section. That its effectiveness is secondary to the goal of fleecing the political class who are grasping at straws to gain any advantage.