Thursday, July 31, 2008

Britney, Paris, and Obama: A Trio Locked in History!

In a few short days the 2008 Presidential race will finally be finished... over... done... complete! That is when the Monday- morning-quarterbacking will commence as high paid analysts and brainiac historians will studiously pore over each detail of the General election: the good, the bad, and the ugly to determine just how the winner won and the loser lost.

Should Senator John McCain be fortunate enough to pull a win out of the bag, history will reveal that the game changing moment... that one moment (it happens by the way in all campaigns) which turned Obama's world upside-down, is this new "Britney, Paris, and Obama" ad. Indeed, on the surface, the ad appears nonsensical and juvenile, both in worth and presentation. Aw... but therein is the mastery of this ad. And, whoever designed it will be lauded for years-to-come for the ad's long term effectiveness!

Now, the first outcome of the 'ad' was to cause a national raucous to be raised. Bait-takers, such as the Huffington Post, who called the ad 'racist'... and MSNBC's Mika Brzezinski and the likes, could be depended on to raise-the-racism trumpet and create that 'noise'. True to form, the 'noise' has been raised, and by design, has caused many to focus on the age-old "Mandingo slave stereotype" or... young blonde, white woman and good looking black man parody. Consequently, many will spend the next 90-days of the election stewing over that... while the real message of the ad lingers in the air.

Then, there are others who are interpreting the ad as meaning Obama, Paris, and Britney are superfluous media creations––void of substance or any other attributable or meaningful contribution to society, to date. For sure... those following that particular vein of thought are also being diverted (for the time being) from grasping the true essence of... and genious of this 'ad'.

Even Senator Obama allowed himself to fall into that "well-set" trap door, as he, by responding to the ad... demonstrated his irritation with its substance. Here are his comments on the ad during a recent campaign stop in Cedar Rapids, Iowa:

"...you’d think we could have a serious debate," Obama said. "But so far, all we've been hearing about is Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. I mean, I do have to ask my opponent, is that the best you can come up with? Is that really what this election is about? Is that what is worthy of the American people?"

And right there... in Obama's comments... is the point-driving essence of that 'ad'. It's not about the racial aspect... and forget about its painting Obama/ Britney/Paris as 'air-heads'. What this ad really does is shrewdly remind the American public of what Obama so blatantly spoke: how sick, and tired, and weary, and worn-out, and exhausted, and burnt-out they are of hearing about Britney, Paris, and Obama–– all the time.

The media's overblown coverage of those three have made their very names nauseating to the general public. People don't want to hear their names, see their faces or hear about any more of their previous or future escapades... let alone 'any' further information about them. Period! Truth be told, every time that 'ad' plays (and it is sure to play non-stop from now until November) Senator Obama will understand the art-of-that-ad... as his poll numbers will be par to those of Britney and Paris by then.

So, if McCain should win... let the history books reflect that it was the media and the media pundits' attempt to ram Obama down the throats of Internet savvy Americans... that killed the presidency of Barack Obama.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sarah J - Des Moines, IA

Good post. Well thought out. Makes you think.

Anonymous said...

P. Smith - DC

I thought your blog piece was very good. Thanks for sending it. As someone who has seen/experienced REAL racism, I feel that your analysis is ON POINT. McCain's ad was not racist. It spoke to a bigger issue. My favorite line is when you say:

"And right there... in Obama's comments... is the point-driving essence of that 'ad'. It's not about the racial aspect... and forget about its painting Obama/ Britney/Paris as 'air-heads'. What this ad really does is shrewdly remind the American public of what Obama so blatantly spoke: how sick, and tired, and weary, and worn-out, and exhausted, and burnt-out they are of hearing about Britney, Paris, and Obama–– all the time."

Anonymous said...

I wish your blogs were more objective. It's apparent that you have disdain for Obama... How about something new and refreshing, more constructive and less skewed? I don't know if that's possible for you, but to each his own. At least you eloquently express your utter dislike of this particular candidate, so for that KUDOS.

Anonymous said...

How long did it really last in the end 20 minutes? (4 days?)
It was a sad move by McCain and the end of any hope (hope a nice word for a better world) for a civil campaign where America might have a chance to actually review the mistakes of the bast and build and understanding of what we need for the future.
Instead, we are going to get rotten small stuff like that ad, and since it worse from the McCain folks.

It's in the gutter again and your post indicates you like it.

Obama may not have been your first choice, but he's a better choice than the guy who authorized that commercial.
bitter much?

Anonymous said...

Oh and the "Art of that Ad" was obvious the second I saw it, it was to link a black man with two white women. It wasn't about "celebrity", it was he's coming to get your young white women.
I saw it, knew what it was and so did you, so did your husband - we all did.
Shame on McCain.