The Ad:
From: Barack Obama Democratic presidential candidate
Type: TV advertisement
Date: September 16th, 2008
URL: The Television Ad
What it says:
The TV ad contains just Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama sitting down and talking about his plan. The only text on the ad other than his information is the Web site link to the plan itself. Here is the text:
“600,000 Americans have lost their jobs since January. Paychecks are flat and home values are falling. It’s hard to pay for gas and groceries. And if you put it on a credit card they probably raised your rates. You’re paying more than ever for health insurance that covers less and less.…”
The Facts:
Obama paints a bleak picture of the economy.
- “More than 600,000 Americans have lost their jobs since January.”
The statement is accurate. The Bureau of Labor Statistics say there has been an increase in 628,000 unemployed since January. That’s more than 1.8 million people nationwide without jobs.
- “Paychecks are flat and home values are falling.”
This statement is also accurate. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has wages rising less then one percent. The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight has home values falling 4.8 percent in the past year.
- “It’s hard to pay for gas and groceries.”
The price of gasoline went up $1.29 from July 2007 to July 2008. The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows gas has risen more than $3 dollars since 1998. The American Farm Bureau Association surveyed 16 different items and grocery prices for those items have risen 10.5 percent from a year ago. For example, a five-pound bag of potatoes went up 83 cents.
- “And if you put it on a credit card they probably raised your rates.”
Consumer Reports magazine writes that credit card companies are raising rates. The average credit card that offers special customer “rewards” had an interest rate of more than 14 percent for the month of September. That is the highest rate since April. Consumers’ credit cards balances are up from $825 billion in 2005 to $962 billion in May.
- “You’re paying more than ever for health insurance that covers less and less.”
This statement is accurate as well. The average cost for a family health insurance plan is $12,680 for the last year. That’s more than double the $5,791 family premium in 1999, reports the independent, non-partisan Kaiser Family Foundation.
Conclusion:
Obama’s bleak picture of the American economy is accurate. This is a reason the economy a major part of the campaign.
The election is November 4th.
For Democracywise, I’m Jeremy Lamb.
(Jeremy is a graduate student in broadcast journalism.)
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