Politicians Grow Wary Of Survey as Internet Spreads Attack Ads

POLITICIANS GROW WARY OF SURVEY AS INTERNET SPREADS ATTACK ADS
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Peter Grant Peter.Grant@wsj.com]
With the election approaching and the Internet growing as a powerful tool for negative campaigning, there's one good-government group trying to harness Web technology for the noble purpose of better informing voters on the issues. Unfortunately, the group, Project Vote Smart, is being undermined by the same negative forces it's trying to combat. Working out of a former dude ranch in Montana, Vote Smart runs a Web site and a toll-free number that tracks more than 10,000 candidates running for federal and state offices. Along with gathering voluminous data on voting records, speeches and endorsements, the nonprofit conducts an exhaustive survey of the candidates' positions on issues ranging from abortion to welfare. For years, the survey was catching on with incumbents and challengers alike. But lately, the number of candidates taking the survey has dropped dramatically. The reason: Many are afraid their opponents will use the information against them in attack ads.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB116173744805102790.html?mod=todays_us_marketplace
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