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Ad Wars

By: Ben Howe (Diary)  |  May 18th, 2012 at 03:15 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

I am a rabid online video consumer. I love them, I watch them, I make them. The greatest thing about online videos is that, unlike television, the creators have all the time they need to explain their point and they are, more importantly, a relatively inexpensive way to react quickly to the opposition.

I’m not sure the Obama administration has figured out yet that between our continual victories on twitter and our exploding video production capabilities, they aren’t the only game in town anymore. Back in 2008, most tech savvy people found the McCain campaign to be woefully inadequate online. This doesn’t appear to the be the case this election cycle with Romney’s camp & conservative SuperPACs pushing new content almost daily.

It is also making for an interesting back and forth between competing narratives. Take for instance this ad from American Crossroads about Obama’s broken promises.




Seems cut and dry. Obama made promises. Obama didn’t keep those promises. Obama is a guy that doesn’t keep promises. But the Obama camp responds with their own video saying that American Crossroads is funded by “secret donors” to spread lies with an evil $25 million ad campaign. They of course ignore the “secret donors” of SuperPACs on the left supporting Obama, the billions that labor unions pour into elections and the fact that American Crossroads $25 million ad blitz was merely matching what the Obama camp was spending.

Here’s their response:

Deliciously, American Crossroads used a similar format to respond to the response.

Ultimately, the hubris of the left (who have always owned the realm of visual media) could be their undoing as it appears we conservatives have finally gotten our crap together and are standing firm in what used to be the left’s playground.

The shroud of the left has fallen. Begun, the ad wars have.

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  • johnt

    Old Crash was in over his head.
    The Romney people seem to be aware that we are in the 21st century. Now will they go for the jugular? Or at least attack on the economic issues, which Crash was totally lost on.
    Normal People, presumably on Romeny’s staff, must respond in kind, some mud is always advisable. But the facts, economics & regulations, are on our side. A two pronged approach is best.
    As well some mention of proposed future Defense cuts, also in the cards.
    Maybe the Romney people learned from the McCain mess?

    • davesinsanantonio

      I think they are just smarter and not living in the horse and buggy era.

      • commonsenseobserver

        Apparently, his current poll lead in TN is 8 pp down from McCain’s 2008 lead.

  • Flagstaff

    Yoda, we have.

    • gekster

      • Flagstaff

        ly appropriate.

  • Aaron Gardner

    It works as a whole for the online crowd and in parts for tv spots. That is just smart.

    • PowerToThePeople

      have you been hiding or have I been blind?

      Either way, good to see you again.

      • Aaron Gardner

        While I am still a contributor to RedState, I have taken a position as the Communications Director for Media Trackers Colorado. Moved back to Colorado late last month and have been focused solely on State and Local level politics.

        You can check out what we have been doing here.

        That said, I don’t want to thread jack Ben, so let’s continue this another time when I post. ;)

  • attherubicon

    While the left may have been the first to use social media, they’ve never had to RELY UPON it. THey’ve always had their foot soldiers in the MSM who were cooperative and effective at getting their message out. For many years they have grown to rely upon the MSM.

    Conservatives, on the other hand, didn’t have the MSM, so we’ve had to quickly learn how to actually leverage social media effectively.

    • davesinsanantonio

      that we use it to tell the truth, which then sets the voters free. As opposed to the libs who try to use any and all media to lie, because they know lies will bind the voters. It seems they would rather lie than tell the truth about anything. But, ironically, the truth we tell about them does them much more damage than the lies they tell about us do to us. You’d think they would learn . . . nah! They are so wedded to the twisted belief that the end justifies the means that they will never learn that the means are as important as the ends. Also, they are so wedded to the lie that intentions are more important than actual results that they will also never learn that “by their fruits ye shall know them”!!! But, the voters are getting smarter, or at least better informed. Let us hope that the better informed ones are the majority.

      • scmom

        that our truth resonates with the ordinary folks out there, because it includes common sense, it is logical and it actually answers some of the questions they have been asking of Obama and his minions and to which they have NOT been getting actual answers.

        The Lying Media are missing a valuable point, and that point is that common sense does sell, and real honest answers to reral honest questions will, in the long run, be more effective than “spin”.

  • tdawg89

    have no shame. Even attempting to lie about his record on taxes and debt is an insult to anyone with a brain in their skull.

  • commonsenseobserver

    But that’s actually a good thing because his message has been diluted and dispersed, flooding everyone with videos no one is interested in. Today alone, I can see eight videos from the Obama campaign, not including the DNC.

  • snappy101

    Let me be the first to say that having a single person stand on your video and yap away through the entire thing (like someone making a speech) is not going to gain converts on either side. All I heard after 1 minute was blah blah blah blah blah. If that’s ad progress, take me back to the old days.

    • funwithknives

      is another’s informative discourse.

      Suffering from ‘short attention-span syndrome’ is a narrow, specific malady , that helped get us into this pickle.
      In no fashion can you satisfy everyone’s want or needs, in one instance. The public response will be tested, measured and either repeated or changed.

      What part of ‘the old days ‘ campaign worked for McCain, anywho? Please, clear that up for me.

      We got time to give these approaches the tune-ups they’ll need.
      So give ‘em a call and clue ‘em in. Inform them how well Your Proposed Techniques would work.
      I’m sure they can use the advice………