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I had a bit of a moment with this picture. At first it made me laugh, and then I realized how powerful this image could be. I came across it as I was reading the news on the Toronto Star’s website—a website where typically educated, potential voters would turn to for the latest news.
Now, let’s be blunt for a second. We all know how much Canadians, and even some Americans, hate George W. Bush. And then here we see a picture of George Bush with... who else could it be other than our Prime Minister, Steven Harper? Right at voting time—now we’ve got the voters’ attention. One man we hate, the other is in charge of our country. But, it’s the tag line that gets us: “Bush-Harper.” Hold on a second. This hyphenated title changes the entire picture. It has the ability to impose a new thought onto us: do we want our Prime Minister to be like George Bush, Mr. “I-Love-War” himself? With even one word, the meaning of the image is changed. You could interpret this image as a peace-keeping gesture between Canada and the US, but instead it’s been used as an attack ad against the Conservative Party.
It’s like the old saying, “A picture speaks a thousand words.” With an image, you have the power to make a statement. But a picture with a title suggests even more power over the statement it’s making to the viewer. You can manipulate emotions and ideas all with the use of a few words and an image to support it. The question is: did it manipulate your vote?
