Radford University political analyst available for election discussion
Radford, VA (10/29/2025) — Political campaigns on the attack
As Election Day in Virginia quickly nears, voters are seeing more and more political ads, many of which have a negative, attacking tone. Chapman Rackaway, professor and chair of Radford University Department of Political Science, is available to speak about the distribution, content and strategy behind attack ads. Rackaway can discuss why political ads are appearing sooner now then they have in the past, how streaming and viewer data means not everyone sees the same ad content, and how "attack-first strategies worsen polarization," he said.
Rackaway is also available for general election topics and can appear as a political analyst with advanced notice.
Rackaway's expertise include: Virginia politics, state and local politics, campaign strategy and management, political communication, social media in politics, political polarization, political parties, U.S. Congress, public opinion and polling, elections (local, state and federal), interest groups and lobbying, campaign finance, U.S. president and executive branch, and American voting behavior (local, state and federal).
Email: crackaway@radford.edu
Phone: 540-831-6602



