(Click image to enlarge) Not to sound get Oliver Stone-y on you guys, but does this still from a McCain ad Higher have people in the background holding up letters to spell the word "hang?"
And before everyone goes nuts, yes, it's obviously a piece of Obama's "change" slogan that is being held aloft, but the ad never pulls back the dark edges of the shot to reveal it.
See the spot for yourself, after the jump:
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A DNC pass holder thought he was doing the world a service when he used his Pre-Convention pass to take YouTubers on a videotaped tour of Barack Obama's staging at Invesco Field, where tonight he will formally accept the Democratic party's nomination. Instead, he recorded footage that John McCain was able to use to mock Obama, since the structure Obama's camp is erecting looks like a Greek or Roman temple (or perhaps just much of Washington D.C.).
So who is this guy who snagged a coveted pass and set up his candidate for attacks from the right? He's Denver's own vlogger "SeeSwan," the "Mile High New Yorker," and boy does this guy know how to abuse video editing software: CONTINUED »
So if you watched last season of Mad Men (and you did), there was that whole subplot of Nixon vs. Kennedy in 1960, and how to market a candidate (Nixon) that was less media-aware than his opponent. The presidential debates coincided neatly with the rise in personal televisions and mass media, meaning for the first time Americans could watch the great debates unfold from home, which some speculate is the reason Kennedy won. Kennedy was way hotter than Nixon.
Similarly, today the race to the White House is being fought on different technological battleground than it's been in previous years. And like JFK, Barack Obama knows how to play the new mediums to his advantage. The MSM may not always like it, but Obama's camp is changing the face of electoral process in a way that Marshall McLuhan would have been proud of. Here's how: CONTINUED »
The cable nets were fishing for a "buyer's remorse" story last night, and their hook caught something.
Leading up to Hillary Clinton's speech, anchors and pundits were wondering whether the ex-candidate was going to 1) heal and unite the Democratic party; 2) get fully behind Obama; 3) remind Democrats of what could've been. She accomplished all three, and CNN found this Hillary supporter to make the case that after seeing Clinton's speech, some Democrats still aren't behind Obama and wish it would be Clinton heading to the White House. An even better "get," of course, would've been an Obama supporter who listened to Clinton speak last night and suddenly turned to her side, casting off his Obama vote and wishing Clinton had been named the nominee. But we can't make ratings miracles, people.
Well, at least you know where MSNBC and NBC stand on this whole DNC "civil war" going on between the regular folks and the crazed Hillary fans — the stations are firmly planted on the side of sensationalist journalism. While Republicans and Democrats are expected to snipe at each other during election time, the media at this convention locked eyes with a contingent of Dems who believe Hillary Clinton should have won the nomination and are threatening to vote for McCain come election time. Even NBC's political director Chuck Todd spoke out against the station spending all its hard-earned Denver drinking money covering the PUMAs (that's Party Unity My Ass), the particular anti-Obama group composed mainly of middle-aged white women, who receive a disproportionate amount of coverage based on their small numbers.
This is the political equivalent of Elisabeth Hasselbeck making those statements about Jeffrey Dahmer and bologna sandwiches; not everyone who likes processed meats is also a serial killer, and only a small, small percentage of people who voted for Hillary Clinton are running around the convention like Star Wars fans at Comic-Con. But since PUMAs are the most, uh, colorful turnouts of the event so far, and since nothing actually happens at the national conventions except network in-fighting, you can bet there is going to be a disproportionate amount of coverage on the crazy cat ladies. CONTINUED »
A friend of mine expressed frustration with Michelle Obama's convention speech last night, saying that he wished Obama didn't have to prove that she's "normal" to ease white America's anxiety over her. I didn't have that exact same reaction, although that was definitely one of the goals of the speech. It was definitely a requirement that she prove she's "normal," but the reason I didn't have a problem with that was because she is normal. Yes, she's an exceptionally successful, well-spoken, and composed normal person, but normal nonetheless.
Barack Obama promised supporters he would tell them his VP pick before anyone else if only they would hand over their cell phone number and agree to download five ringtones a month for the low price of $9.99*. (* This last part is not true.)
Too bad the Times and the rest of the MSM broke news that Joe Biden was Obama's choice before anyone received their super-special 3 a.m. text from Team Obama. That, and pranksters managed to fool some into thinking Michael Phelps and Mickey Mouse was Obama's running mate, thanks to 1) the ease of sending texts; and 2) the gullibility of Americans.
When the text finally did go out, a whopping 2.9 million people got Obama's note, which would've cost the average thumb puncher some $290,000, assuming a 10 cent-per-TXT fee. Maybe Barack got a discount; maybe he had a bunch of people in his campaign send out the message and then let them use it as a tax write-off.
But having been beat by the press and been subjected to devious hoaxes, one might argue Obama's cell phone gimmick became a poorly orchestrated publicity stunt. Nope, it was so much more CONTINUED »
QUEERTY: Gay people are mad at Out owner Paul Colichman for saying he won't endorse Barack Obama. Neal Boulton, who works for rival Genre, said, "By tearing up his check for Obama, he basically wrote one to McCain." Boulton doesn't really care, of course - he just wanted his name in an item about Barack Obama. CONTINUED »
It's difficult to pin down exactly what Jennifer Hudson has come to symbolize in American culture. Grammy-winning sensation? Scorn of Simon Cowell? Black best friend? Someone obviously thought about The Hudson when considering America, then, since she's singing the national anthem on Thursday when Barack accepts the nomination.
As with everything else in this campaign — the hue of Michelle Obama's dress last night, the decision to give their kids a mic during the Obama remote — the choice for who sings at this week's most historical moment in politics in decades was a carefully orchestrated undertaking.
So why Hudson instead of Beyonce, or Aretha, or even Kanye? (Kanye: "This is the story of a champion …")
Bruce Springsteen, chosen as Obama's closing act on Thursday, is an obvious candidate; he represents the blue-collar, hard-working, all-American mensch that Obama's critics claim the candidate isn't. (And Obama-loving NBC loves The Boss!) But the the choice of Hudson wasn't a fluke. So what has Hudson done in her career to deserve such a distinction? CONTINUED »
'A day after Sen. Barack Obama chose Biden as his running mate for the Democratic ticket, Biden's "Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics" was in the top 10 on Barnes & Noble.com and in the top 40 on Amazon.com. It was so in demand that on Sunday it was listed as out of stock by both booksellers.' [AP]
News that a Kansas printer was processing a run of Obama-Bayh bumper stickers made its way to Matt Drudge on Friday, via a KMBC-9 News report, leaving the link dump site all but confirming the Democratic contender would be picking the Indiana senator as his running mate. That's not how it happened, of course; at 3am that night (early Saturday morning), Obama began a 15-minute blast of text messages announcing Joe Biden as his running mate, with on-lookers noting the timestamp very carefully.
Before that happened, though, the printing company found it had mere hours to capitalize on the publicity of the rumor, which it may or may not have started. This meant endless reports that got its name, Gill Studios, in the press. And you know what's the best way to keep a false rumor alive? Refuse to confirm or deny it, which is what Gill Studios did.
And now that they've been exposed as having no official role in the campaign? They're disappointed in the media for running the very rumor they could've quashed. CONTINUED »
Shepard Fairey is known for his nonsensical, DIY street art OBEY (which originated with the "Andre the Giant has a Posse" stickers) of the late 90's. Now, the once anti-establishment skateboarder is making posters for the Showtime's new season of Dexter and has become the unofficial artist of Barack Obama's Hope campaign. Much like Godard in his Maoist period, Fairey's decision to make his return to the limelight a political statement gives a new sort of street cred to the artist's work.
Though let's not pretend that Fairey is only motivated by change: CONTINUED »
Despite its attempt to spin things another way, CNN is, like most American news organizations, in some financial trouble. But what the Olympics did for NBC, CNN is hoping the national conventions will do for them.
That's why, despite belt tightening, CNN is gambling $100K on a specialty camera that can capture a bird's-eye-view for the Denver DNC this week. Skycam is an aerial camera that is accessed on remote-controls, and is mounted on wires that will criss-cross the top of the Invesco Field where Barack Obama will accept his party's nomination. (Other networks eventually agreed to split the cost of the cam, after realizing their own coverage would look completely amateur by comparison.)
The clever device is typical for a giant sports event like the Super Bowl, but a little odd for political coverage. The pay-off, though, might be worth it: Obama's acceptance will coincide with the 45th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech, only adding to the expected ratings bonanza.
There were no Skycams back in MLK's time, however, and you have to wonder about the decision to spend that kind of money when you might be better off just hiring some better TV execs who understand the concept of subtly when introducing a gimmicky PR stunt: CONTINUED »
Remember a couple months ago when everyone agreed that John McCain would never win a Teen Choice Award the election because he was old and computer illiterate? And Barack Obama was (relatively) young and knew how to text message people? Welp, those days are over:
B&C received its e-mail from the Obama camp Saturday morning at 4:56 a.m. announcing the pick, but the McCain campaign had already sent its e-mail two hours earlier pointing to Biden's campaign comments about OBama's inexperience.
Okay, so Team McCain beats Team Obama in emails. Not that bad, it just means the GOP is finally catching up to late twentieth century technology. But it only gets worse:
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Youth vote correspondent and nepotism beneficiary Luke Russert began his DNC reports yesterday with a Chris Matthews sit down. There, he noted the high temperatures in Denver, repeated something Chuck Todd had to explain to him (that Obama needs to win the 18-34 vote by 20 points to beat McCain), reminded viewers young people are lazy shits who need to be reminded via text message about Election Day, and schooled Chris Matthews on Facebook. CHRIS MATTHEWS DOESN'T KNOW WHAT FACEBOOK IS. Jesus. This is Barack "Web 2.0" Obama's biggest cheerleader?
The only redeeming quality of young Russert's contribution so far? That he wouldn't let Matthews interrupt him. Video down here: CONTINUED »
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