The New Obama ad, a thought:

http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/still_ad/


What's actually pretty mean about this ad: McCain looks old in his 1982 picture.

That's nasty, and I love it.

and I usually like Obama's ads. This one doesn't talk enough about the economy. Get specific, please and hit hard.

They do more than one. Some are for "issues" voters. Some are for ignorant voters.

Negative with a cheery smile.

I had one of those damn huge cell phones.

I think the only attack in this ad is the picture. "John McCain is really old."

We'll see if that registers.

It can be cute at first, but people want directness after a while. One side ends up looking tough and in control and the other side looks afraid to punch.

The ads that resonate the most with voters are the ones that people can immediately remember. This one isn't memorable and lacks the "bite" that people will latch onto in a positive way.

Beyond that, I think it could backfire. A lot of people can't use a computer or send an e-mail - at least without some degree of difficulty. My dad is a chemical engineer and he still hunts and pecks on a keyboard and calls me for help on the simplest thing. People might see this as an "elitist" approach by insulting McCain's lack of expertise with using the computer or email. I would have left this out.

I like the contrast 1982 v. 2008, but this doesn't seem like the best way to do it.

I can see him coming back with an ad TODAY talking about how "elite" Obama is with his "Macbook" and "Gmail" and whatnot and how McCain served as a POW blah blah blah while Obama was checking his facebook account. IT IS TOO EASY A THING TO TURN AROUND ON OBAMA. That's why you make ads that are DEVASTATING to the other side, so much so, they just want it to GO AWAY and you do so with facts, quotes, strong images, urgency, and great voice overs, particularly using the subject candidate's own voice is preferable.

I can't believe that this actually got through the process. There's better, more effective Obama ads made by people on YouTube.

This 1982 ad is an embarrassment to Obama and I'm pissed someone in this campaign would put something like that on air and put my candidate's name on it. We need some grown up tough hard hitting ads in a hurry.

Contrasting 1982 vs. 2008 McCain is a great strategy, but how the hell did it get to cutting him down about computers and e-mail and then on to the important stuff like the economy and middle class help? This is beyond ridiculous. Way to throw over 50% of your actual voting populace under the proverbial bus.

a Repig, knows about computers. He doesn't actually USE it, but he stands there and reads it and watches his wife use it.

Obama is not going after the over-70 age group, which is probably the ONLY group that would be okay w/our leaders being that out of touch.

It was a risky move in an area that really doesn't show a lot of promise. It's an issue that people can identify with to some extent and isn't an issue that really matters in the grand scheme of things in the election. Sure, it does to us at DU, but outside of our friendly confines, it probably isn't that big of a deal.

Risk/Reward on this one just really wasn't worth it given that its fodder for McCain's spin and disinformation - plus it gives him a chance to make more political hay over distraction issues that don't even matter - something he is very good at.

Or the Britney Spears/Paris Hilton ad? Both grabbed news cycles despite their idiocy, playing off the freeper taunts that Obama was a "celebrity" and "the messiah".

If this one goes viral among a certain generation in all the campiness that it is purposely attempting to be, then it has potential to grab a news cycle or two as well as do some "branding" of the opponent at the same time.

I thought the ad was tacky, pathetic and low - personally.

Politically, it was a good move by McCain. It appealed to the fundy base by making the connection that Obama was somehow a "false prophet" by using the Moses imagery and capitalized on the "messiah" talking point that the right-wing has used in connection with Obama. Sure, we all thought it was trash - and make no mistake it is - but it helped shore up his core constituency and helped keep the "messiah" and "celebrity" lines in play.

What differentiates this ad from that one - asides from the Moses ad being pathetic - is that its not really clear which demographic we are shooting for in this ad, whereas the McCain ad is clearly aimed at the religiously influenced voter and the people who fear "celebrity". Are you shooting for the computer literate who are concerned about the economy? Are you shooting for the computer illiterate that know that computers are useful? Is this aimed at the younger generation - even though that the younger generation? Is the inability to use a computer tied somehow into McCain's handling of the economy? Are we to believe that the computer plays an integral role in the Presidency? (I'm sure it does to some extent, but most people don't perceive it that way) Is the younger generation voter important enough and secure enough to potentially piss off a sizable portion of the voting groups that actually do turn out to vote?

screaming that it is over for special interests (something like that). Then goes on to show pictures of all the lobbyists McCain has working in his campaign. Then it says if 7 of his top people are lobbyists, who do you think would run his white house? Pretty good ad imo.

I'll have to find the newest lobbyist ad.

Talk about 'more of the same'.

It's like watching the Kerry campaign all over again.

With everything going wrong in the world, and with everything that McCain wants to do, Obama chooses to go after McCain on his inability to send emails.

You've got to be fucking kidding me.

There's plenty of people that don't know how to use a computer proficiently or send an e-mail. This insults everyone who is not an IT professional or a MS certified expert. Sure, I get what they are trying to convey - that he's old and out of touch - but this wasn't the way to do it.

camp..to them being computer illiterate is almost incomprehensible which can be equated with not competent to lead this country in the 21st century. They have been raised with computers. It's a generational thing.

We are counting a block of the electorate that has come up short for many years. I know that theres a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of young people that are turning out this time - but its still something that is risky.

By putting this ad out there, they are coming across as elitist to the portion of the voting populace that actually does go out to vote. Bad move.

As others have said, this ad will be forgotten within five minutes of anyone seeing it. He needs to go after McCain/Palin hard on their gaffes and policy positions. This ad was weak.

It hits on the emotion people feel when they think about how completely out of touch McCain is with the average american.

nuance is good, but it needs to be used far more sparingly than was used in Kerry's campaign.

keep it short, sweet, to the point.. hit on EMOTION!! and if they can make it funny, all the better!

brillian job, Barack!

It is mentioned in some of the articles about him before he went to Vietnam

means that it is what? Being discussed! McLame's stupid and campy "celebrity" and "Moses" ads got gobs of attention and grabbed a news cycle.

This ad is campy as well, with a late "'70s style" font for the "1982" over a picture of a disco ball (:rofl:)... The ad also includes some of the fads of the time (Rubik's cube, an old Tandy Trash 80, old mobile phone, etc) and the McLame video is blended in there as if he were one of the fads too!

It is pretty cold. :rofl:

In commercial advertising, the old adage "All press is good press" applies. In political advertising, it doesn't quite work that way, especially with talking heads spinning plus the counter-advertisements that come into play. Risk vs. Reward is a major factor in political advertising and this ad just doesn't show that much reward since its such an easy target for counter-spin.

But it still got the news cycles!

If an Obama ad gets the news cycle, I wonder if the beat-down will be brutal, the same, or actually fair?

There's a huge risk with this one and the reward doesn't seem to me to be that high. We'll see how it plays out though, here to hoping it turns out in our advantage!

that this might be different enough to catch attention - at least among a certain demographic (and not just the very youngest voters but all the way up to my age group, which is the same as Obama's - having been in or just graduated from college in 1982).

I still have my doubts about it and I still would have used different material, but that's just me. I can see what you are saying though after having some time to reflect on it and consider it, you have made some excellent points.

What will be interesting to see is if Obama's ad or McCain's response to it will get the most airtime. It's a risky gamble to make.