#12 - To suit the needs of corporate clients, advertising

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

Cannot Be True. The correct answer choice is (A)

There is no conclusion in the Stimulus, alerting sharp test-takers to the likelihood that this question will be a Must-Be-True or Cannot-Be-True question (Resolve the Paradox questions also often do contain conclusions, but this Stimulus clearly does not belong to that family). The Stimulus states that ad agencies design controversial ad campaigns in order to garner free media coverage and evoking public comment by officials.

The Question Stem asks “The statements above, if true, most seriously undermine which one of the following assertions?” Because the Stimulus is assumed to be true, we know that this is a Type 1 or Type 4 question (Must-Be-True or Cannot-Be-True). Had the question asked which of the following conclusions could be drawn based on the above statements, we would be solving a Must-Be-True question, but because it is asking which of the following assertions is most seriously undermined, we know it is a Cannot-Be-True question. Do not be confused by what the question is asking. Four of the answer choices could be true; one cannot be true. The one that cannot be true is the assertion that is most seriously undermined, and thus, the correct answer.

Answer Choice (A): This is the correct answer choice. The Stimulus tells us that ad campaigns do not necessarily seek to persuade. Rather, the ad campaigns are designed to call attention to the client by using a controversial ad and getting free air time. Because persuasion is not a goal of these new ad campaigns, this answer choice is most seriously undermined by the Stimulus.

Answer Choice (B): This answer seems attractive because it discusses that it is only a small amount of voters who admit to being influenced by political advertising campaigns. But a small amount of people being persuaded is still effective even if the effect may be relatively small.

Answer Choice (C): This answer reverses the Stimulus. In the Stimulus, it is said that corporate ad campaigns are borrowing from political campaigns; this answer choice reverses it and claims that political advertisements are borrowing from the corporate world. Only if it were mutually exclusive – corporate campaigns can borrow from political campaigns or political campaigns can borrow from corporate campaigns, but not both – can this answer choice not be true and thus correct. But it is possible for political ad campaigns to borrow from the corporate world and vice versa, so this answer choice must be eliminated.

Answer Choice (D): This answer is an inference that could be made on the basis of the Stimulus not one that cannot be made. Since it is an inference that could be made, this answer choice must be eliminated.

Answer Choice (E)L This is a “so what?” answer. So what if advertising agencies that do campaigns for corporate clients are not usually chosen for political campaigns? That is what is proffered by the Stimulus. The Stimulus tells us that techniques used in political advertising campaigns are being used by ad campaigns for corporate clients, not that the advertising agencies are shared or not. It does not necessarily follow from the Stimulus, but it is also not seriously undermined by the Stimulus. Answer Choice (E) should be eliminated.

[niketown3000]

Q12: Suiting the needs of corporate clients successfully with the political ad campaign tactic

- Is this a cannot be true or a weaken?
-Can you explain why A is right and why others (B especially) are wrong?

-Niel

[Nikki Siclunov]

Hi Niel,

This is indeed a Cannot Be True question. Compare this question stem to a Weaken stem:

The statements above, if true, most seriously undermine which one of the following assertions? (Cannot Be True)

vs.

Which one of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the reasoning above? (Weaken)

In Question 12, answer choice (A) is correct because it is contradicted by the information in the stimulus: clearly, the usefulness of an advertising campaign is NOT based solely on the degree to which the campaign persuades its audience, since the example provided shows that some campaigns are simply designed to be controversial (not persuasive). The stimulus disproves answer choice (A), making it the correct answer to a Cannot Be True question.

(B) is not directly disproved by the stimulus, since the author never discusses the degree to which the campaigns are successful in influencing voting behavior.

Hope this helps!

[reop6780]

What kind of question is this ?

Based upon, "The statements above, if true, most seriously undermine which one of the following assertions?"

I guessed it belonged to the 1st family... ?

I was completely lost in this question, and additionally correct answer A does not appeal to me at all.



In what sense does the stimuli describe usefulness of an advertising?

Again, I need to start from the right question type to approach this question more efficiently..

[Steve Stein]

Hi,

That's an interestingly worded question: it's a Cannot Be True; basically, it asks, if the statements above are true which of the following cannot be true?

Advertising agencies are now serving corporate clients the same way they sometimes service their political clients: get airtime with controversial ads to draw media and public comment.

So, if corporate clients are now having their needs met with mere controversy, it cannot be that an ad campaign's usefulness is based entirely on actual persuasiveness.

I hope that's helpful! Please let me know whether this is clear--thanks!

~Steve

[reop6780]

Yes, knowing that it was "cannot be true" was indeed very helpful !

[akanshachandra]

Hey all! So this might be a completely dumb question, but I don't understand where in the stimulus we are directed to believe that the intent of the ad people is NOT to persuade, I did not choose A because I thought the information in it was "new information" not in the stimulus, therefore being "could be true", thus incorrect. I chose C because I thought that the stimulus was saying that the strategy being used by corporate campaigns was modified from a strategy already in use by political campaigns, therefore C was "can't be true' since it was asserting that political campaigns borrowed such strategies from corporate campaigns

[Francis O'Rourke]

The advertising agencies are attempting to stir up controversy to gain more coverage. This necessarily means that they are not trying to persuade the audience. If they persuaded the audience, then there would be no controversy generated

Choice (C) is not proven by the stimulus, but it is still possible. Let me know if you have any questions about the administrator's explanation of this answer choice.