2008 Primaries, Views on News, public relations • July 3rd, 2008

Children of the corn

by Chris Lato

In the corn-growing Midwest, members of Congress are picking sides over ethanol. This is shaping up to be a serious campaign issue, but one presidential candidate is walking a tricky line that will be tough to maintain as anger over high gas and food prices grow, and the public gets restless and demands solutions.

To set the stage, U.S. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner recently sent a piece out to his constituents with the headline: “Ethanol Mandate Must End.” He makes the argument that record prices for gas and groceries can be traced back to a great extent to the mandate, which subsidizes the ethanol industry and gives incentives for farmers to grow more corn to use in fuel.

Sensenbrenner points to studies that contend ethanol is actually bad for the environment in a number of ways – causing more carbon emissions, prompting poor land use decisions, and requiring a huge amount of water to produce ethanol.

Now, consider this bit from a long interview with Barack Obama in the current issue of ‘Rolling Stone’ (I know, I got a lot of column fodder from this issue). The interviewer is the fair-and-balanced Jann S. Wenner, who actually makes a half-hearted attempt to pin Obama down on this one. Wenner actually sounds a little like Sensenbrenner – talk about strange bedfellows.

Jann S. Wenner: You’ve been a big supporter of ethanol. But studies show it doesn’t do anything to reduce global warming, it’s actually a less efficient way to produce energy than gasoline, and it’s contributing to growing food shortages worldwide. Are you going to continue backing it?

Barack Obama: Corn-based ethanol I see as a transitional technology. We’ve got to invest in alternative fuels.

Wenner: This one is ranked as pretty bad.

Obama: I understand, which is why we’re going to have a transition from corn-based ethanol to cellulosic ethanol, not using food crops as the source of energy.

Wenner: So you foresee this coming to an end.

Obama: What I foresee is us transitioning into other ways of developing these energy sources. The fact that we had corn-based ethanol, and that industry has matured, provides us with distribution networks and infrastructure that can ultimately be used for other ethanol sources.

Wenner doesn’t touch on why Obama has been a big supporter of ethanol, and notice Obama is carefully refusing to explicitly bash ethanol. He has his reasons – read this fascinating New York Times story to get the scoop on why this is.

For starters, I’m not a scientist but I have to think it’s not as easy as just flicking a switch to make such a massive change in the production of ethanol. Will the government be funding such a massive changeover? How long would it take? What about farmers being pushed to make a big change in what they grow, such as switchgrass, which Obama has said could be used to make cellulosic ethanol?

Also, Obama is a Senator from a corn-growing state. He has voted for the ethanol mandate in the past. Does he now repudiate that vote? Will he continue to support corn-based ethanol, of immediately push in a new direction? What will his friends in the ethanol industry think?

No one asked me, but I would suggest Obama rethink his campaign structure when it comes to those he is relying on as energy advisors, and make a stronger effort to advance his energy agenda specific to ethanol. The public is moving past rhetoric and looking for answers every time they put $80 in their gas tank and pay ever-rising prices at the local Piggly Wiggly.

Obama and John McCain both have energy plans out there for all to see. But as the cliché goes, the devil is in the details. And when it comes to politicians, it’s what they do, not what they say, that is always the most telling. Speeches may dazzle, but voting records are far more telling.

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2008 Primaries, Branding Politix, Messaging, Views on News, public relations, wispundits • February 26th, 2008

Huckabee begs: Rip on me, too!

by Chris Lato

In the world of Mike Huckabee, there’s no such thing as bad PR. Huckabee is out there begging the New York Times to take a shot at him, similar to the Times’ hit on John McCain last week, which was widely derided by conservatives.

Maybe Huckabee said this with tongue in cheek — the article doesn’t make that clear. After his self-aware appearance on Saturday Night Live, who knows which angle he’s coming from. But it’s clear he recognizes his last best hope is getting as much free media coverage as he can. From any other way you slice it, it’s all over for the guy. But he’ll have an awesome clip file when all is said and done — which raises an excellent PR question about generating media coverage that matters.

It’s interesting to ponder what Huckabee hopes to gain from all this, beyond the ego boost. Does this build his credibility? Will people be impressed by all the coverage he’s received - or is he veering off into joke-of-the-campaign status? Will his relationship with the press be an asset to the GOP after 2008? Can Huckabee parlay this candidacy into a power-broker role after the elections? After all, four years ago, Howard Dean was considered a joke, too - a joke he parlayed into leading the Democrat party through an historic rout at the ballot box in 2006. Who’s laughing now?

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Branding Politix, Speeches, Strategic Blueprints, public relations • February 25th, 2008

Defining McCain, defining Obama

by Chris Lato

This is weird- I was having a conversation at lunch Monday about this exact topic, only to find this article that articulates the issue well. Assuming it will be Obama vs. McCain this November (and I am getting close to making that assumption), this is what the race will be about.

Barack Obama is sending messages about who he is and what he wants to stand for. It is an appeal to emotions and feelings. That is the niche he has very successfully carved out for himself.

In contrast, John McCain’s messages are more about steady leadership. He is not about ‘hope for the future.’

Obama appeals to the heart, McCain to the head. On that basis, who wins in November?

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2008 Primaries, Messaging, Strategic Blueprints, public relations • February 21st, 2008

Duck! Let the mudslinging begin

by Chris Lato

Here we go.

Now that John McCain is virtually assured the GOP presidential nomination, the New York Times has dusted off some ages-old allegations and placed them on the front page, above the fold.

The honeymoon is over, and McCain is getting his first real taste of Presidential politics, 2008-style. The story has been kicking around for a while, and it appears the Times held off on publishing the piece until after McCain all-but locked down the nomination, under pressure from the McCain camp.

That seems to be a tacit acknowledgment that this story is weak sauce. Otherwise, why not run with it when you had the chance back in December?

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2008 Primaries, Leadership, Strategic Blueprints, Views on News, public relations • February 21st, 2008

The McCain bombshell …… behind the scenes

by Chris Lato

Here’s a fascinating peek behind the scenes of the New York Times report on John McCain. The Times piece has apparently been percolating for a number of months. The internal newsroom struggles depicted here offer an educational look at how journalistic standards and campaign coverage are mutating.

John McCain, attacked by the New York Times: he can wear this like a badge of honor when courting the conservatives. This is a PR advantage that the McCain camp should pick up and run with.

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