Watch "Campaign 2012 in Ads, Anecdotes and Media Perspectives."

The crew from MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” had a spirited, wide-ranging conversation about the 2012 campaign, focusing around a series of particularly powerful or notorious TV advertisments from this year. The ads sparked conversation on truth and media bias, how cutbacks in media budgets impact coverage, and the rise of Super PACs.

The panel started with a Romney ad claiming Obama had removed work requirements for welfare.

Joe Scarborough, former congressman and host of “Morning Joe,” explained that this commercial was objectively false. “Why,” he wondered, “don’t journalists just call such things out?” John Heilemann, national editor and columnist for New York magazine, responded that journalists can feel uncomfortable making such concrete statements.

Panelists noted other significant shifts in how the media operate over the past years. The rise of online media has fueled a drive toward “linkbait,” sensationalized articles designed to capture attention, which Sam Stein, White House reporter for the Huffington Post, noted reflects the media’s “market driven bias.” As the web has changed the creation and consumption of news, media outlets are subject to increasing budget cuts. Mark Halprin, senior political analyst for TIME magazine, pointed to the cutbacks and said he was one of only three reporters covering Vice President Joe Biden on a recent trip. Heilemann observed that those who do cover events are younger and therefore cheaper, but they might not have the rapport with candidates that a more experienced reporter would have. As Biden told Halprin: “There are no reporters that cover me any more that know enough about my history and the history of American politics.”

Halprin noted that the role of journalists often seems to be to catch candidates in gaffes and other embarrassing slip-ups; this focus leads to a vicious cycle of greater control by the campaign and less honest, free interactions with the media, leaving journalists forced to focus on even more minor stories.

Panelists agreed that 2012 was the year of the Super PAC. These organizations are able to take unlimited contributions from donors and spend them in support of campaigns. After showing this ad:

Stein called Newt Gingrich the first victim of the Super PAC era, having been pummeled by such negative ads in Iowa and Florida. Stein was particularly concerned about the use of Super PACs at the state level, where he felt $1 million would enable a group to simply “buy the election.”

Super PACs, by U.S. law, are not able to coordinate directly with the official campaigns, but as panelists observed, they are often run by political allies, making them skeptical of the distance between the two. The next ad shown was paid for by an Super PAC supporting Obama.

In past cycles, such controversial ads might lead to a candidate being forced to repudiate them, but Michael Steele said the the attitude of both campaigns this year is “we will not back down.”

After a range of questions from the audience, the panel wrapped up and ILF guests and attendees headed off for lunch.