Video Debunking
A simple technique for exposing the lies behind a television ad is to edit the original message by splicing in footage that contradicts the original statement. This approach works best when the contradictory footage contains the candidate’s own words. Observations by journalists or pundits may be dismissed as media bias.
A number of sources in the above video (MSNBC, “The Daily Show”) might be dismissed by conservative viewers as biased. Furthermore, the quote by T. Boone Pickens (presented as “a former oilman”) is itself misleading because it doesn’t point out that Pickens currently develops alternative energy sources (wind power) for profit, and thus is not an impartial source. By providing the entire context of Obama’s statement, the video does effectively counter the McCain ad’s misrepresentation of Obama’s remark about Iran being a tiny country (see Politifact’s analysis of McCain’s distortion of Obama’s words).
Video debunking is particularly effective in reaching the type of audience that would have been persuaded by the original clip. The propagandist may also have a difficult time presenting a counter video argument because the viewer may lose track of who’s saying what.