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Can Television Bring Down a Dictator? Evidence from Chile’s “No” Campaign

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  • Felipe Gonz√°lez
  • Mounu Prem

Abstract

Can televised political advertising change voting behavior in elections held in authoritarian regimes? We study the case of Chile, where the opposition used television campaigns weeks before the election that ended the Pinochet regime. We show that after campaigns were launched, firms linked to Pinochet lost stock market value, confirming the contemporaneous importance of television. Using national surveys conducted before the election and administrative electoral data, we provide evidence of a positive effect of television exposure on opposition votes. These results suggest that televised political campaigns can help to defeat dictators at the polls.

Suggested Citation

  • Felipe Gonz√°lez & Mounu Prem, 2017. "Can Television Bring Down a Dictator? Evidence from Chile‚Äôs ‚ÄúNo‚Äù Campaign," Documentos de Trabajo 15681, Universidad del Rosario.
    • Handle: RePEc:col:000092:015681
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    Cited by:

    1. María Angelica Bautista & Felipe Gonz�lez & Luis R. Mart�nez & Pablo Munoz & Mounu Prem, 2018. "The Geography of Repression and Support for Democracy: Evidence from the Pinochet Dictatorship," Documentos de Trabajo 17007, Universidad del Rosario.

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    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • P26 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist and Transition Economies - - - Property Rights

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