Don't believe the hype about Big Data in 2016

Political campaigns are known for being a step behind when it comes to innovation.

If you've ever watched a bunch of cookie-cutter campaign ads and wondered why they look like they were produced by a couple of college students who just learned how to use Final Cut Pro — and not, say, Madison Avenue execs capable of creating heart-wrenching 30-second film masterpieces — you're not alone. But if there's one place where campaigns are supposed to be utilizing the latest in techno-whizbangery, it's in their exploitation of Big Data. With the information tools now at their disposal, they can microtarget voters down to the depths of their very souls.

This vision of highly sophisticated, algorithm-driven campaigns isn't completely inaccurate. But it's missing an important piece, the piece that is supposed to make it all seem either exciting or sinister, depending on your perspective. That missing piece is persuasion. In short, campaigns know how to find you in ways they never did before. But once they've found you, they haven't gotten any better at winning you over.

In a front-page story on Monday, The Washington Post reported on the data operation that supposedly may have propelled Ted Cruz to his current position near the front of the Republican pack:

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