Obama

Video scrutiny keeps ’em honest

/ Angelo Fernando / 1 Comment

There are lots of web sites, political groups, media folk and organizations (even the candidates’ sites) fact-checking statements politicians make, so it must be increasingly hard to face the cameras.

Some wing it, others –like Joe Biden- completely make it up as they go, only to be found out. Everyone is up for this kind of scrutiny.

Watch Jon Stewart’s approach, running side-by-side video clips that reveal the danger of double talk.

Video scrutiny like this is playing an interesting role this election season. It must force campaign managers to think hard before deploying surrogate snipers on the campaign trail

“Gather Conservatives, lend me a hand..”

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

JibJab has come out with another classic ‘toon to relieve the dark mood about the economy and the sniping that passes for campaignin’.

What’s more interesting than the entertaining usual suspects, is that this time around, being a social media election and all that, you can insert yourself into the video! Then post it to your social networking site, or grab the link.

Watch this.

Quotes for the week ending 26 July, 2008

/ Angelo Fernando / 3 Comments

“Randy died this morning of complications from pancreatic cancer.”

Posting on Randy Pausch’s web site, on Friday 25 July announcing the sad news of the American professor of computer science known for his “The Last Lecture,” that became a New York Times best seller.

“I get that many consumers of online-transmitted information don’t like print much anymore…What I don’t get is why those Republic readers who haven’t sworn off computers altogether would simply ignore the logical digital complement to their dirt of print-based information.”

Paul Maryniak, General Manager of The Mesa Republic, inviting print readers to make better use of the Arizona Republic web site.

“To the average flier, this isn’t a case of the boy who cried wolf; It’s a case of the wolf who cried wolf.”

Editorial in Advertising Age about the disingenuous attack by the CEOs of 12 airlines asking their passengers to support them in their fight against oil companies to restrict oil speculation.

After 9/11, Mr. Bush had the chance to summon the country to a great nation-building project focused on breaking our addiction to oil. Instead, he told us to go shopping. After gasoline prices hit $4.11 last week, he had the chance to summon the country to a great nation-building project focused on clean energy. Instead, he told us to go drilling.

Thomas Friedman on on the significance of 9/11 and 4/11

“The gnashing of teeth from the left took on the odd cast of intellectuals congratulating each other for recognizing the satire of the image …”

Ann Marie Kerwin, on the New Yorker cover that sparked an uproar by the Obama campaign last week.

“The Web is not stealing audience away from TV, but rather helping them to build it.”

Mitch Joel, commenting on the fact that 45% of the CBS TV audience, watches their shows online.

“A throng of adoring fans awaits Senator Obama in Paris …And that’s just the American press.”

John McCain commenting on Obama’s visit to Europe and being neglected by the local media.

Quotes for the week ending 12 July, 2008

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

“He brought wit, grace and a great love of country to his work.”

President Bush, on Tony Snow, former White House press secretary who died today.

“But Obama is not just tacking gently toward the center. He’s lurching right when it suits him, and he’s zigging with the kind of reckless abandon that’s guaranteed to cause disillusion, if not whiplash.”

Bob Herbert, syndicated columnist for The New York Times

“Wake up and smell the rice Mr. Ploom! Im tired of Americans who don’t know a thing about the beauty, complexity or richness of Chinese culture.”

Online reader comment to a story about Ambush Marketing at the Olympics, by Businessweek. The story turned into an ugly exchange between readers from Japan and China.

“…it’s not the story about of the burglar who fell asleep on the resident’s couch that matters. Instead, it’s the everyday news affecting everyday life that we hope keep you coming back.”

Jacqueline Shoyeb, Online Editor, Mesa Republic

“As a metaphor, it’s strained. As a narrative –well, it has none.”

Bob Garfield, in Advertising Age, on the ad for HP’s TouchSmart PC, that he calls a large step ahead of the Mac.

“Together, they represent the real stories of the Games.”

Lenovo launching a web site called “Voices of the Olympic Games” featuring 100 athletes, from more than 25 countries.

Is this ambush marketing? Impossible is nothing.

/ Angelo Fernando / 1 Comment

There is some speculation about an ambush marketing tactic by Abercrombie and Fitch, placing people with their logo behind Barack Obama.

If they did, it’s a smart move. A&B said it was no more than a coincidence. The New York Post commenting on these ‘three mystery men’ with Abercrombie logos, note that campaign records reveal that an A&B employee has donated $500 to Obama’s campaign.

Nothing is too far fetched, with so much media attention given to the two Democrats. Let’s just hope Adidas shows up on the Clinton campaign with the “Impossible is nothing” slogan. Beats the generic “Yes we will!”

Soft drinks and presidential candidates

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

Someone asked me to describe the “positioning” of the three candidates in the race for the White House. Were we facing tough choices between the first possible Black president, the first potential woman in the White House, and an “veteran” candidate?

I tried to explain how while their positioning is blurred, they were good studies of branding. Their cross-over ideologies and mutual respect for one another (Clinton’s not in this camp) make them less a Coke vs Pepsi, and more like Mountain Dew vs Red Bull –which are now called “functional soft drinks.” Yes, McCain exhibits exhibits characteristics of an energy drink, with functional benefits. His packaging is very strong, and his positioning is very shrewd.

On the beverage side, all this election interest has not escaped Mountain Dew, which is holding its own “Dew-mocracy” to find the elixir of freedom.

As for Red Bull, WIRED’s (What’s Inside) analysis of Taurine, an elixir, called it a mild sedative, an age-defying antioxidant with “the potential to steady irregular heartbeats.”

Sounds like Obama?

Quotes of the week ending 8 March, 2008

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

“Obamicans.” “McCainicrats”

Former White House chief of staff Karl Rove in the Wall Street Journal, about needeing to watch Republicans who back Barack Obama and Democrats who like John McCain, respectively.

“So, I think they have to spin this as best they can, but the reality is still the reality.”

David Axelrod, chief strategist for the Obama campaign, on Clinton’s win in Ohio and Texas this Tuesday.

“We are all living in the middle of a paradigm shift.”

Andrew Leckey, Director of the National Center for Business Journalism, on the role of journalists, at a workshop in Phoenix, Arizona.

“it’s no doubt true that many PR & advertising agencies don’t, in fact, ‘get it’ yet … But it is also true that many clients don’t get it yet, either.“

Todd Defren, PR Squared, commenting on the fact that marketers want to put social media into the bucket of metrics and campaigns.

“We can also look forward to flexible screens, holographic projection and LED wallpaper that allows any flat surface to function as a display.”

Bill Thompson, on the technology of teaching.

“In the end advertising isn’t about the click.”

Mike Leo, CEO of Operative, in Businessweek, on the slowdown in Google’s advertising’s pay-per-performance model.

“Haven’t you people learned the art of pretending that you know what you’re doing?”

Cathy Taylor, on why ad agencies (some of whom occasionally blog) are not walking the talk about social media.

“A message is one-way communication and a conversation is not. Rather, a conversation is like verbal tennis where words and ideas bounce back and forth between both parties.”

Andrea Goulet, commenting on the book Now is gone.

Obama, and the iPhone generation

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

Will a poster be influence the choice of the next president of the United States?

You can sense the cult-like passion these days for Brand Obama. The icon, the metaphor, the human equivalent of the iPhone for a lot of young voters.

The icon status is not accidental. Not that is contrived, either. Take this famous Shepard Fairey poster that’s showing up on the campaign –as you see here on a story about the energized voters at UT Austin. It was created by Mr. Fairey who was not involved with the Obama campaign.

It tells you something about the role of user-generated content that’s matured at a perfect time. Before the mother of all cult brands, the iPhone, was released, Apple fans raced to create designs of what they believed the iconic brand would look like.

Once upon a time presidents and prime ministers were more or less positioned and branded by ad agencies and PR strategists. The famous “Labor isn’t working” poster by Saatchi & Saatchi for Margaret Thatcher comes to mind. This year in the US elections, the branding -if you could still call it that– is in the hands of the people.

Sure, the Clinton and Obama campaigns pays big money for ridiculous he-said-she-said ads. But what’s remembered, talked about, spread virally (the “I have a crush on Obama” and “Yes we can” videos) have been created and launched by citizen campaigners on their own dime.

Speaking of shiny new objects, people camped out to catch a glimpse of, and vote with their pocketbooks for the iPhone. That same crowd –young people –seems all too eager to stand in line to vote for another “advanced communication device.”

Should Obama brush off plagiarism, or “turn the page?”

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

Maybe Barack Obama did “borrow” words from Massachusetts governor. It brings up two interesting questions:

  1. How much of what we use in communication should we attribute?
  2. How fast should we come back and apologize?

He called it “too big of a deal,” but as recent history has shown us, plagiarism has been quite a deal. From Dan Brown (Da Vinci Code) to Kaavya Viswanathan (How Opal Mehtha got kissed…) to journalists who inadvertently use material without attribution.

“Certainly plagiarism can have degrees,” notes Steve Buttry. And in case you’re looking for attribution,it’s a quote from the American Press Institutes‘s web site, in an article “When does sloppy attribution become plagiarism.” He goes on to say, “For the most part, sloppy attribution is to plagiarism as manslaughter is to murder.

As Plagiarism.org suggests, it’s good to attribute:

  • whenever you use quotes
  • whenever you paraphrase
  • whenever you use an idea that someone else has already expressed
  • whenever you make specific reference to the work of another
  • whenever someone else’s work has been critical in developing your own ideas.

That the accusation comes from the Clinton campaign, makes sense. She is running out of brand differentiation, and will turn to the department of dirty tricks –even though she has lifted lines from Obama such as “Yes we will!” that echoes his “Yes we can!“The ‘academic’ rebuttal -explaining the circumstances of the borrowed words– is never good enough. Considering how anything you say in an election campaign can and will be mashed up, Youtubed and turned into a Swiftboat attack, this could be grave stuff.

Just apologize, and let’s “turn the page,” no matter who strung those three words first!