Quick Comment: Video Games

Photo taken from official trailer of The Road We've Traveled.

The trailer for The Road We've Traveled, the 17 minute David Guggenheim documentary chronicling President Obama's first term in office, was released yesterday.

Critics will claim that the documentary is an extended campaign ad in disguise, over hyped and brimming with sensationalism, glossy effects and forced interviews in favour of Barack Obama's record. Even the sceptics can't deny that it is a clever move at this point in the race where voters are bombarded with the dirty ads of the GOP candidates and the Republican electorate is at a clear divide. President Obama is pushing the positivity at this stage, before the gruelling race against the ultimate GOP winner begins and the gauntlets are thrown down, when that stage is eventually reached.

Quick Comment: The Vulture Tactic - Attack Ads

It has been revealed today that ad spending for Super Tuesday alone has reached $10million. Mitt Romney has spent approximately $6.3million on negative ads, and it is estimated that $16.4million has been invested  on negative ads alone by the Restore Our Future campaign, a Super Political Action committee overseen by former Romney advisers. Super PACs have the freedom to spend an unlimited amount on advertising under the condition that they do not directly converse with the candidate. Although it has been pointed out that Clinton and Obama viciously attacked each other in the Democratic race of 2008, the harshest of comments are usually saved for the general election. The  'Restore Our Future' campaign has chosen to attack fellow Republicans, sending out messages which claim that 'Newt Gingrich has more baggage than the airport'.  The aggressive style of the Romney campaign has been on display in several made for Web videos discussing Barack Obama's leadership, it has also created trending topics on Twitter to attack Gingrich such as #grandiosenewt. 

Quick Comment: Family Matters

President Barack Obama has come under intense scrutiny following the use of the First Family in an online ad for the 2012 campaign. The family photograph, released last week, has come under fire following criticisms that the family are being used as a political asset despite Obama's own reluctance to use his family during the 2008 general election.

Family members being used in a campaign is hardly a new tactic, it was seen used by Sarah Palin in 2008, and the 2012 candidates are reeling in their families as political props. Mitt Romney's five sons have all been included in his race for nominee, and new favourite Rick Santorum temporarily abandoned the trail and cancelled press appearances in Florida in order to stay with his ill daughter. Humanizing and softening a politician through the use of family is no new ground breaking tactic (David Cameron's newborn baby pictures in 2010 anyone?), yet why does Barack Obama suffer criticism of this standard tool? Or is it that the average American voter believes he should rise above the typical campaign ploys?

A user of the Washington Post online commented on this article  claiming 'Even the crude Clintons had more class.' In all the negative ads currently being pushed with Mitt Romney throwing his fellow Republican candidates to the wolves, a pleasant family photo is an anomaly in the mass of slaughtered Republican egos. My only question is, where is Bo? What better way to take a dig at the infamous Mitt Romney dog owner story than by using Bo in a campaign ad? Bark for Barack, Bo, Bark for Barack.


Shelley-Marie Phillips