41 Commercials in 1 Music Video
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7X_GXGJTRQ&hl=en&fs=1]
Adaptabulous.com
Because of the huge influx in writers for Age of Conversation 2 - Gavin and Drew broke down the theme Why Don't They Get It into specific chapter themes, including manifestos, from conversation to action, and business models, among others.
My chapter, Adaptabulous, included notes from the Institute of Business Model Evolution, a faux training program for agencies figuring out how to survive as we move past the oughts. Obviously it's difficult to go into great detail, but what our collective future comes down to - the ability to adapt. To be adaptable among different mediums and placements, to use content differently, develop insights in new ways, and to quickly and easily define and redefine our purpose. Our new challenge is to find comfort in a state of constant differentness.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdoHIs65VBw&w=425&h=344]
Post to TwitterThe Problems of Prop 8
On the day Americans removed one enormous barrier to equality, we also erected another. And the two might even have been interconnected. It does seem like some rather sick joke that the increased black turn out that resulted from having Obama on the ticket helped to shift enough crucial votes to reverse a California Supreme Court decision to allow gay marriage. (To be clear, 70% of blacks voted Yes on Prop 8 according to exit polls, but it took a lot of people voting to pass this bill).
As we celebrated American progress Tuesday night, a majority in one of our most liberal states were still willing to accept the tenets of "separate, but equal" while denying rights to some citizens that are available to others.
That said, the marketing of No on Prop 8 seemed, at least from Texas, to be far too scared to say what they were really fighting for. From a reader of Andrew Sullivan:
"I worked for both the No on 8 campaign and the Obama campaign this year and cannot tell you how far apart those two were in style and substance. One was top down, the other bottom up. Ironically, it was the presidential campaign that was the grassroots model, not the state-level proposition campaign. As soon as I started working for the No on 8 campaign I was amazed at the level of scripting: "don't say 'civil rights,' don't say 'constitution,' don't say 'gay.'" I couldn't believe it.
One of the most brilliant things about the Obama campaign was that they didn't expect callers and canvassers to be policy wonks. They just said "tell your story, let people know why you're voting for him. Connect with people." I can't help but feel at this point that if the gloves were taken off we could've helped people get a grip on the real issues at stake here, which I happen to think is a matter of soiling the state constitution.What was even more confounding was the No on 8 campaign's decision to stay away form polling places at churches and schools. First of all, most polling places are at churches and schools, and second, that mentality buys right into the Yes on 8 brainwashing campaign that same sex marriage is going to corrupt our morals and our children. This idiocy was obvious to everyone that I worked with on the campaign. What was going on with the leadership upstairs?!!!"
More from Rachel Maddow:
Unwilling to make the argument with those that disagreed while shying from the moral equivalence of the civil rights movement in the sixties, the group allowed the heavily funded opposition to vilify gay people. Given the past of the Mormon religion, it does seem rather odd that they would provide the main funding for Yes on Prop 8, but I guess irrationality and hypocrisy make for good playmates. (Again, not to trying to indict the entire religion, just those behind the disinformation campaign).
Take a look at one of the many fear-mongering ads implying that gay marriage would be taught in schools. (Is that a class or something? Math, Science, History, Marriage? Ugh...)
What has become clear after the passage of proposition 8 is that the group didn't attempt outreach in churches. They didn't draw the clear comparisons with the historical shamefulness of making any minority group a second class citizenry. It was three years after the civil rights act that whites were even allowed to marry non-whites in Loving vs. Virginia. Just over 40 years ago, largely on the basis of the same religious fundamentalism that denies gays the right to marry today, marriage was also used as a crude tool to divide. And the failure to bring the populace to those conclusions may have doomed the ability to squelch the bill.
On a related note, too many times I've been hit with the "what do you care?" defense, which I would doubt is just a Texas problem. The majority of straight people probably fall into either the indifferent camp or the against it camp, which proves further problematic for the cause of equality. Not sure how to solve that problem, but I would again think that drawing those historical comparisons might flip on a few light bulbs that oppression isn't only a problem for those who are oppressed.
Hee-Haw Transition Team
Obama Photo Sets
From the Boston Herald, from two years on the trail, and perhaps my favorite, behind the scenes on election night.
Religious groups pour millions of dollars into Yes on Prop 8, and on the night we celebrate the breaking down of a barrier, we erect another. More on this later, but it never helps to hide what you're actually trying to sell. Perhaps they shouldn't have buried the lead.
Compare and analyze terms from technorati, google insights, twitter and more from one easy-to-use dashboard.
109 year-old Texan and daughter of a slave casts her vote for the first black President. On a sort of related note, can we stop with using the term African American now? At this point, isn't it just American? They don't call white people British Americans or French Americans, or whatever. Time to move on.
In case you were curious how it was done, here's the story of a campaign actually built from the bottom-up. It'll be hard to quantify the actual effect of the Obama ground game on the election, especially with the large monetary advantage, but I think it's safe to say he probably wouldn't have gotten out of the primaries without it.
The National Journal takes a comprehensive look at the historical demographics of the swing voter according to exit polls. Pretty interesting read.
Not sure this requires much explanation.
President Arauz
Mike has a new blog design, and a couple interesting posts about what engagement means, for the election and otherwise..
Where will my.barackobama.com Go?
We don't yet know. But, thankfully, it seems that it will be somewhere...
From Facebook founder and Barack Obama online organizer Chris Hughes:
"Over the past 21 months, millions of individuals have used My.BarackObama to organize their local communities on behalf of Barack Obama. The scale and size of this community and its work is unprecedented. Individuals in all 50 states have created more than 35,000 local organizing groups, hosted over 200,000 events, and made millions upon millions of calls to neighbors about this campaign. There can be no question that these local, grassroots organizations played a critical role in Tuesday's victory.
What has made My.BarackObama unique hasn't been the technology itself, but the people who used the online tools to coordinate offline action. My.BarackObama has always been focused on using online tools to make real-world connections between people who are hungry to change our politics in this country.
And the site isn't going anywhere. The online tools in My.BarackObama will live on. Barack Obama supporters will continue to use the tools to collaborate and interact. Our victory on Tuesday night has opened the door to change, but it's up to all of us to seize this opportunity to bring it about.
In the coming days and weeks, there will be a great deal more information about where this community will head. For the moment, let's celebrate this victory and know that the community we've built together is just the beginning."
Missouri - (or ah)
Took some time out of the busy schedule to hit the streets in a state a little less, well, poorly decided.
So, a trip to Missouri, with most my time in Missourah...
The St. Louis Office.
The St. Charles Office.
Out on the streets, puns win the political day. (Keep Faith in Government)
From the Arch (and a night photo).
And the creepiest manufactured city ever, "New Town" in Saint Charles. When we turned onto New Town Dr. from New Town Blvd (or Ave.), my first remark was, "this freaks me out. I feel like I'm in the Truman Show." Turns out, the developer is the same guy who created the surreal city in the Truman Show, Seaside, FL.
From their website.
And, sort of related, a team red office in Dallas. Since when do VP's get their own signs?
What you should do.
Just a couple more days, then we can stop being so pol-centric round here...
Age of Conversation Returns
Why Don't They Get It?
That's the question asked and answered Wednesday morning at 8am when the Age of Conversation 2: Why Don't They Get It releases on Lulu. (Go here to buy)
237 authors from 15 countries, including some of the foremost thinkers in Social Media, share their thoughts across a range of topics in the sequel to the successful first addition, Age of Conversation. And just like the first one, every dime of the proceeds goes to support Variety Children's Charity.
Big thanks to Drew and Gavin for making it happen again. Not easy to do once, but downright admirable to make another go of it. Props to Darmano for the cover art.
Follow the authors on twitter. (tweets @ #AOC2)
Complete Author List Below:
Adrian Ho, Aki Spicer, Alex Henault, Amy Jussel, Andrew Odom, Andy Nulman, Andy Sernovitz, Andy Whitlock, Angela Maiers, Ann Handley, Anna Farmery, Armando Alves, Arun Rajagopal, Asi Sharabi, Becky Carroll, Becky McCray, Bernie Scheffler, Bill Gammell, Bob LeDrew, Brad Shorr, Brandon Murphy, Branislav Peric, Brent Dixon, Brett Macfarlane, Brian Reich, C.C. Chapman, Cam Beck, Casper Willer, Cathleen Rittereiser, Cathryn Hrudicka, Cedric Giorgi, Charles Sipe, Chris Kieff, Chris Cree, Chris Wilson, Christina Kerley (CK), C.B. Whittemore, Chris Brown, Connie Bensen, Connie Reece, Corentin Monot, Craig Wilson, Daniel Honigman, Dan Schawbel, Dan Sitter, Daria Radota Rasmussen, Darren Herman, Dave Davison, David Armano, David Berkowitz, David Koopmans, David Meerman Scott, David Petherick, David Reich, David Weinfeld, David Zinger, Deanna Gernert, Deborah Brown, Dennis Price, Derrick Kwa, Dino Demopoulos, Doug Haslam, Doug Meacham, Doug Mitchell, Douglas Hanna, Douglas Karr, Drew McLellan, Duane Brown, Dustin Jacobsen, Dylan Viner, Ed Brenegar, Ed Cotton, Efrain Mendicuti, Ellen Weber, Eric Peterson, Eric Nehrlich, Ernie Mosteller, Faris Yakob, Fernanda Romano, Francis Anderson, Gareth Kay, Gary Cohen, Gaurav Mishra, Gavin Heaton, Geert Desager, George Jenkins, G.L. Hoffman, Gianandrea Facchini, Gordon Whitehead, Greg Verdino, Gretel Going & Kathryn Fleming, Hillel Cooperman, Hugh Weber, J. Erik Potter, James Gordon-Macintosh, Jamey Shiels, Jasmin Tragas, Jason Oke, Jay Ehret, Jeanne Dininni, Jeff De Cagna, Jeff Gwynne & Todd Cabral, Jeff Noble, Jeff Wallace, Jennifer Warwick, Jenny Meade, Jeremy Fuksa, Jeremy Heilpern, Jeroen Verkroost, Jessica Hagy, Joanna Young, Joe Pulizzi, John Herrington, John Moore, John Rosen, John Todor, Jon Burg, Jon Swanson, Jonathan Trenn, Jordan Behan, Julie Fleischer, Justin Foster, Karl Turley, Kate Trgovac, Katie Chatfield, Katie Konrath, Kenny Lauer, Keri Willenborg, Kevin Jessop, Kristin Gorski, Lewis Green, Lois Kelly, Lori Magno, Louise Manning, Luc Debaisieux, Mario Vellandi, Mark Blair, Mark Earls, Mark Goren, Mark Hancock, Mark Lewis, Mark McGuinness, Matt Dickman, Matt J. McDonald, Matt Moore, Michael Karnjanaprakorn, Michelle Lamar, Mike Arauz, Mike McAllen, Mike Sansone, Mitch Joel, Neil Perkin, Nettie Hartsock, Nick Rice, Oleksandr Skorokhod, Ozgur Alaz, Paul Chaney, Paul Hebert, Paul Isakson, Paul McEnany, Paul Tedesco, Paul Williams, Pet Campbell, Pete Deutschman, Peter Corbett, Phil Gerbyshak, Phil Lewis, Phil Soden, Piet Wulleman, Rachel Steiner, Sreeraj Menon, Reginald Adkins, Richard Huntington, Rishi Desai, Robert Hruzek, Roberta Rosenberg, Robyn McMaster, Roger von Oech, Rohit Bhargava, Ron Shevlin, Ryan Barrett, Ryan Karpeles, Ryan Rasmussen, Sam Huleatt, Sandy Renshaw, Scott Goodson, Scott Monty, Scott Townsend, Scott White, Sean Howard, Sean Scott, Seni Thomas, Seth Gaffney, Shama Hyder, Sheila Scarborough, Sheryl Steadman, Simon Payn, Sonia Simone, Spike Jones, Stanley Johnson, Stephen Collins, Stephen Landau, Stephen Smith, Steve Bannister, Steve Hardy, Steve Portigal, Steve Roesler, Steven Verbruggen, Steve Woodruff, Sue Edworthy, Susan Bird, Susan Gunelius, Susan Heywood, Tammy Lenski, Terrell Meek, Thomas Clifford, Thomas Knoll, Tim Brunelle, Tim Connor, Tim Jackson, Tim Mannveille, Tim Tyler, Timothy Johnson, Tinu Abayomi-Paul, Toby Bloomberg, Todd Andrlik, Troy Rutter, Troy Worman, Uwe Hook, Valeria Maltoni, Vandana Ahuja, Vanessa DiMauro, Veronique Rabuteau, Wayne Buckhanan, William Azaroff, Yves Van Landeghem