Prabowo's cute campaign

Prabowo Subianto, a former Indonesian military leader and defense minister, reshaped his image as a cuddly grandfather figure using AI-generated cartoons to win the country's two thousand twenty-four presidential election as a conservative candidate.

Cuteness everywhere now

Cuteness is ubiquitous in modern marketing, from adorable puppies and bears to babies in messaging for sports, toilet paper, and political campaigns. Academics define cute as infant attributes like big eyes, chubby cheeks, and round bodies that trigger caregiving responses.

Conservatives prefer cute products

A study published in the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science with nine controlled experiments found conservatives showed greater preference than liberals for baby-like cute products. The link was partly explained by associations between cuteness and innocence or purity.

Three thousand six hundred forty-eight tested

Researchers collected observations from three thousand six hundred forty-eight participants across the United States, United Kingdom, and India. Political conservatives consistently liked baby-like cute products such as mugs, keychains, and water bottles more than liberals, measured by purchase intent.

Moral values shape political messaging

Moral value systems permeate everyday consumption decisions often without explicit awareness. The same marketing techniques that make cute products attractive can craft relevant political messages, but consumers should scrutinize the message itself rather than relying on cute messengers or mascots.

“remember that a cute messenger or mascot shouldn't substitute for scrutiny of the message itself, especially when it comes to important decisions at the ballot box or in other contexts.”