Nordisk valretorik. En jämförelse av politisk tv-reklam i Finland och Sverige.

Sammanfattning: Aim: The aim of this study is to describe which messages and by which rhetorical means were communicated in political TV-advertisement in Finland and Sweden. The study also aims to analyze how the rhetorical choices were influenced by the political and social context in these countries. Material: Two TV-commercials from the latest parliamentary elections in each country were chosen. The leading left-wing and right-wing parties were chosen from each country. Theoretical perspective: This study is based on theories on political parties’ vote maximization and the development of the modern electoral campaign. Methodology: The method used in this study is rhetorical analysis. Results: All commercials had similar themes and were characterized by a low level of conflict. This is related to the common Nordic context in the two countries. At the same time, there were three major differences between the two countries. First, the two Swedish ads were much more alike than the two Finnish ads. This could be related to the differences in the party systems. Second, the use of argumentation based on ethos was more important in Finland, which relates to the personal voting method. Third, the Finnish ads were to a greater extent based on language, which relates to the history and culture of the country.