The Art of Hard-Hitting Messaging

Rural Freedom Network’s Billboards and Ads Are Flowering in Purple and Red Soil

By Steve Schear

The word is out: billboards reach people who are captives of the right-wing propaganda machine. Earlier this year, Indivisible National raised money for billboards in purple districts held by Republicans. Now it is raising funds for billboards highlighting MAGA's Epstein problem.

Elsewhere, the Kings County CA Democratic Party’s Pinocchio billboard (above) slams GOP Rep. David Valadao (CA-CD22) for voting to cut Medicaid. Even the DNC has gotten on board with billboards in four red congressional districts near rural hospitals that will be hurt by the budget bill.

The beauty of both billboards and radio ads is that they can be placed easily and inexpensively, with the help of the Rural Freedom Network. RFN’s three principals, Sherwood Guernsey, Ben Hillman, and Lee Harrison, have decades of experience in political messaging. Most professional messaging experts are expensive, but Guernsey, Hillman, and Harrison volunteer their time and expertise, only charging $500 per billboard design or radio ad production to cover expenses. That means for about $2,500 groups can place a billboard, or a bunch of radio ads in districts now held by Republican House members.

The People Behind the RFN

Guernsey, RFN’s CEO, has been politically engaged since he won a race for president of his high school student council. He later served four terms in the Massachusetts state legislature, co-founded a county-wide Democratic organization, and is a three-term member of the Massachusetts Democratic State Committee.

Hillman, RFN’s Creative Director, started even younger. He made his first anti-Vietnam War poster at age ten. He studied graphic design at the Pratt Institute, and now has over 40 years of experience creating persuasive messages using a wide variety of media. An award-winning filmmaker, Ben recognizes the historical moment and now focuses entirely on political messaging.

Harrison, RFN’s Vice-President, attended the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism and is a very experienced writer. He has been a member of the Massachusetts Democratic State Committee for over 20 years and currently co-chairs its Rural Affairs and 2025 Platform committees.

The three started the RFN in early 2017, right after Trump’s election. “We decided that messaging was a serious issue that deserved attention,” says Guernsey, “and that a lot of Democratic messaging was not clear and crisp. . . or for that matter, effective. We wanted to jump in with that. One of the things we’re real good at is taking an issue, boiling it down and using very few words to generate an emotional impact with voters. That’s the key to our messaging.”

They especially focus on rural areas that have been hard hit by negative economic forces. Guernsey grew up in an upstate New York town that was once a thriving community. “It is now really struggling,” says Guernsey. “There’s no pharmacy, no grocery store, and you have to drive many, many miles to get the things you need. It’s definitely an uphill battle doing political work in rural America, but it’s essential. That’s why we continue to do our work.”

Videos and Postcards, too

The RFN’s highly effective videos can be used as digital or TV ads or placed on social media for free. Watch this one about GOP Rep. Marionnette Miller-Meeks (IA-CD1). You can see other RFN videos here. RFN’s latest ads hit targets for repeatedly vowing to protect Medicaid, then voting for massive cuts to finance tax cuts for the rich.

RFN also designs and prints free postcards, with groups paying only for postage to mail them. Last year, they sent out over 600,000 cards. They suggest sending three different postcards to each voter, because “that begins to have an effect,” says Guernsey.

Messages Are a Collaboration

When considering message content, the RFN works closely with local organizers to decide what makes sense for them. “Usually it’s a county Democratic Committee chair, or their media person, or the head of an Indivisible in an area,” says Guernsey. They will often do regular zooms with local leaders. They aim to “start early” before Republican money has flooded the district and numbed voters. “Convincing swing voters that Democratic values are their values and that Democrats deliver for them is so much easier early in the cycle,” RFN’s website notes.

The RFN and The Purple Project Make It Easy

Every month, more activists and organizers are getting on board with billboards. A Seattle artist is raising money for a Pinocchio billboard in Iowa’s CD-1 with GOP Rep. Miller-Meeks’ face in place of Valadao’s. Indivisible activists in AZ-CD6 are planning billboards to blast GOP Rep. Juan Ciscomani for hurting his constituents. Four California Democratic county parties are considering billboards in Republican-held congressional districts throughout the state.

The RFN has collaborated with The Purple Project to make placing billboards or radio ads easy. If you or your group is interested in either medium, contact the RFN at sherwood@sglawoffice.com or lights.on@twc.com for help with creation, artwork, production and messaging. Ben will then jump in with “creative.” You can email The Purple Project at steveschear@gmail.com for help with placement and content.

“We’re here to create messaging for you,” says Guernsey. Noting how Republicans try to own the word “freedom,” the Rural Freedom Network is “taking back that word for people who really mean it.”