IMC Hawks Blog

Tag: Obama

  • White House Ballers

    With the re-election of President Barack Obama there is one sport that is overwhelmingly happy that he is staying another four years, and that sport is basketball. It is obvious to all that President Obama loves basketball and is more than happy to use his influence to help spread the game. It is well-known that he likes to fill out the NCAA March Madness brackets that everyone goes crazy for and is surprisingly good at it. Like most major sports, the NBA  championship team gets to visit the White House and meet the President for a photo-op. Obama,of course,  isn’t complaining since he is a huge NBA fan and has been to several games during his Presidency. Never before has a President been so involved with one sport that he can call upon the biggest name athletes in the NBA to come help him out at different charities and fundraiser events at any point in time and they will come running. For example, in this election year, Michael “Air” Jordan hosted a 3 million dollar fundraiser for President Obama in New York and had NBA players like Carmelo Anthony, Rajon Rondo, Kyrie Irving, Joe Johnson, and Paul Pierce in attendance to play some hoops. With so many NBA superstars on his side he gets a good amount of publicity and respect from basketball fans all over the country. Obama is so integrated into the basketball world that the video game “NBA 2k13” has him show up as a character in the game to greet you at the White House when you win the championship in the game.

    Obama in 2K

    This is great publicity for the Commander-in-Chief, as basketball fans everywhere will see the President’s face every time they win the championship.  He may be the first President with the ability to advertise in a video game just because he loves the game of basketball so much. On election day he even plays his now-traditional “Election Day” basketball game with several big name NBA stars and a variety of White House aides. We think it’s safe to say that many basketball fans and basketball console gamers will be seeing more of President Obama the next four years.

    Eugene Lee, Lauren Habig, Erin Kiffmeyer, Hannah Eure, Ally Walton

  • Four More Years… of Media Frenzy?

    All night long Americans were glued to their televisions or their computers anticipating the results of the 2012 Presidential Election. Around 11:20PM on Tuesday, November 6th America got their answer: four more years for President Barack Obama. Some celebrated and some cried. This election deepened the political divide between Americans unlike any other election. What made this election different from any other? The answer is the mainstream media bias.

    Even though Obama’s campaign team stood their ground in the battleground states, the real winner should be media outlets. Whether it was the presidential debates or the campaign trail, media coverage was everywhere. Does this increased access to information via the media mean we are better informed than we used to be? The mainstream media is our main source of information; we rely on them to know what is going on outside of our bubble.

    The question is… what happens when the media takes on a biased role? A major criticism of the media is that it isn’t just giving us information but also conditioning us about how to think about the issues. CNN and Fox News are criticized as two of the most biased sources in the market, and they are also two of the largest. This means the same story can be presented on both outlets but the facts included can persuade the reader to feel a certain way about the issue. This article from CNN states that Romney supporters were asking for Fox News instead of CNN when it became clear that Obama was taking the lead. This is good news in that it means people are aware of the biased, however, turning to a known biased source to get the story you want compromises the credibility of the information you receive.

    Media bias is everywhere. It is nearly impossible to get just the facts on the current issues. As informed consumers, this leads us to question how the bias impacts the general public. What happens when the public accepts the bias opinion as factual information? For one thing, the party divide deepens. A conservative tuning into Fox News sees his/her beliefs reaffirmed day after day, and the same happens when a liberal tunes into CNN. After a while, this can create a red and blue polarization. In some cases the divide has increased so much so that the two parties cannot begin to reason with the opposite side. Does this mean it is the media’s fault we have become so divided in our political views?

    Now that the election is over, it is time that we refocus our attention on the issues at hand in our country and work together for the greater good of America despite personal political affiliation. Is this still possible with such biased media? Regardless of who won, how do we now come together to do what is best for America? President Obama: the media will either provide a platform to cultivate support for your ideas, or tear every move you make to shreds. As citizens of this great nation, we are all rooting for you… the President of the United States of America.

    – Alexandra Huss, Caroline Merrill, Alyssa Morrello, Lauren Van Trigt, Dann Williams

  • Just say anything to win.

    With the 2012 presidential election day right around the corner, the candidates have found themselves in a television battlefield. Each candidate hopes to take his opposition down by firing loaded words weekly. It seems that advertisements to vote for a candidate have instead evolved into advertisements to not vote for their competitor. Both the Obama and Romney campaigns have spent millions on these largely negative commercials that appear to be overflowing our televisions, especially in battleground states. As viewers being constantly bombarded by accusatory messages, are these presidential candidate advertisements doing more harm than good?

    Romney has recently received immense criticism for a misleading television advertisement that aired primarily in Ohio about Obama and the auto industry. The commercial states that Chrysler is moving Jeep production to China because of Obama’s failed policies, a claim that aimed to hit home with the thousands of Ohioans employed in the industry. Although Chrysler does intend on building Jeeps in China, it can be interpreted from the advertisement that Chrysler will stop making Jeeps in the United States and move all production to China. The Democrats’ response to Romney’s claim used blunt terms attacking Romney’s character. The claims were deemed as “outrageous assertions” and Biden even asked of their competitors at a rally in Youngstown, Ohio, “Have they no shame?”

    These responses may have successfully portrayed Romney as a “liar,” but Obama’s auto advertisement used some of the most biting rhetoric yet, according to The Detroit News. It emphasizes Romney’s “wrong-headedness on the auto bailout” (as cited from The Detroit News’ editorial page) but never mentioned the paper’s overall endorsement for Romney in the election.

    Every word in a speech by a presidential candidate is deliberately chosen. Each phrase in a campaign advertisement is carefully crafted. Nothing presidential candidates deliver is accidental, innocent, or meaningless. Politicians are most successful when their campaigning efforts communicate the precise message their audience wants to hear. But what happens when they will say just about anything to win?

    –Erin Kiffmeyer, Hannah Eure, Eugene Lee, Ally Walton, Lauren Habig

  • Celebrity Branding Through Social Media

    Nowadays, there is a wide variety of ways to advertise and promote one’s image as well as many products through personal branding. Celebrities are among the first to take advantage of the new social media phenomenon to further promote themselves and products they have endorsed.  Social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, etc. have been in a state of constant growth, as they cater to both the average consumer as well as celebrities. Interconnectivity has played a crucial role in keeping celebrities globally connected to a wider public in order to further promote themselves and gain a higher level of exposure.

    When it comes to many things such as self-branding and the use of social media, one must elaborate a thought-out, cohesive strategy in order to achieve optimum results. First of all, it is important to keep in mind that not all celebrities wish to accomplish the same thing through their social media outlets.  There are many reasons for a celebrity to join a social media site, from simply connecting with fans to promoting a product or event.  Also, each social media medium serves a different purpose and targets a more specific audience. In a recent trend, celebrities have been representing themselves by “opening up” and increasing their level of self-disclosure through many forms of social media. This could be due to the fact that it is believed that social media can be used to build trust with fans as well as build and develop a more personal connection with them by allowing them to see the “real” superstar.  For example, it is difficult to feel a personal connection to President Obama.  By following Obama on Twitter or Facebook, one might feel that this personal relationship has greatly improved.  Not only is this beneficial for the average American, but it could indirectly help Obama.  For example, someone that does not currently have a stance on politics could follow Obama on Twitter, like what they see, and vote for him in the next election.  This is just one example that portrays that social media outlets are a powerful, mass communication tool.  That being said, it is important for one to remain very conscience about what they say.  It does not take much for a tweet by a celebrity or political figure to create a huge controversy, whether or not they intended it to.  We sometimes forget that celebrities are human beings that make mistakes, and one of these mistakes could be by putting too much personal information on the internet.  Voicing an opinion can easily offend many other people.  The celebrity could in theory remove the tweet, but that does not mean it will be deleted from the Internet.  With the millions of followers many celebrities have and the fact that celebrities tend to keep social media outlets as public as possible, almost anyone could snap a screenshot of the tweet immediately and continue to circulate it through the web.

    While there are disadvantages for celebrities putting their lives on the World Wide Web, outlets such as social media can also be used as a free type of advertising or promotion.  Almost all main-stream celebrities have utilized multiple forms of social media from blogs to Twitter.  Britney Spears, Kim Kardashian and Justin Bieber are all examples of celebrities that have endorsed various products and used social media (more specifically, Twitter) to promote them. This has shown to be an effective marketing technique at little or no cost to them.

    Not every celebrity endorses a certain product, but they do essentially brand themselves when they decide post on social media sites.  Whether they mean to or not, the content they post reflects their personality and in turn, allows followers to characterize them.  Mastering how to effectively brand one’s self on these sites has in essence became a modern day art.  In today’s day and age, a social media suicide could destruct the celebrity’s image as a whole.

    – Sasha De Vecchi, Lindsay Gallagher, Jay Reilly, Cary Welborn

  • Why did you vote for THEM?

    The strength of political party’s brand largely depends on knowledgeable voting consumers who understand what the brand has to offer.  However, no matter what a person thinks about a particular party, everyone tends to come to an agreement that the strength of a brand can quickly collapse. If the party is viewed as divided or sending incompatible messages, their voter’s perception of the cohesiveness breaks down and credibility is lost.  Although, if the party is perceived as being more “exciting” and innovative the voters are more likely to pardon their misdoings.  According to Gareth Smith and Alan French, “as all political brands try to appear trustworthy and honest, transgressions pose a clear threat to political brand relationships.”  They also stress that the overall brand must satisfy their needs when it comes to “the competitive nature of the political market, the credibility, attractiveness and personality of its leaders, and the party’s perceived salience and credibility in fulfilling its promises.”

    A politician’s campaign for the Presidency is no different than a company marketing a product or service to a target audience.  Just like in marketing, it’s important for politicians to conduct research and gain knowledge about what their target audience perceives to be important and credible.  During the 2008 election, Brad VanAuken, author of Brand Aid, developed, conducted and analyzed a survey given to 100 people from 29 states on political branding strategies.  He hoped to gain insight into the personality traits often associated with strong and powerful political brands.  Through his research, he established two lists; the most desirable and the least desirable qualities for potential Presidential candidates.  Two of the most desired qualities for a potential President include trustworthiness and intelligence. On the other hand, two of the least desired qualities include using fear to motivate and supporting companies over people.  Political candidates should integrate these characteristics into their brand to appeal to their target audience.


    With the upcoming elections, politicians can take this study into consideration when developing a campaign to promote their personal brand.  It’s important to remember that consumers can make or break a political candidates’ chances of becoming our next President.  Candidates should do whatever they can to connect to their audience.  People feel more of a connection with a political brand if there is access to online interactions. Obama successfully created an online community to establish social networks to recruit and fund-raise among the local community. The Internet has become a means of relationships with its voters and will be of importance for the future political brands.

    “Political brands clearly face a challenging future with the only certainty being that old strategies such as the occasional re-branding and change of leader will be insufficient to address the core concerns that consumers have of them. As the world becomes more interrelated, nation states are increasingly unable to deliver on their promises to electors; electors who are increasingly aware of the brand’s attempt to influence them and less prepared to accept their right to do so.” –Gareth Smith and Alan French

     

    -Kelsey Bendig, Andrea Blanton, Brooke Keller, Brian Burch

     

  • The White House Appoints A Man To Do A “Woman’s Job”

    The White House is breaking social norms by appointing the first male social secretary.  Not only is he male, but he is also gay.  Jeremy Bernard will be in charge of planning seamless social functions for the White House.  Bernard was previously the United States ambassador to France and was chosen because of his view that the White House is the “People’s House”.

    His sense of humor and infectious laugh reinforces the Obama’s vision of how they want the White House to be portrayed.  Not only this, but the liberal ideals of Obama match up with Bernard’s homosexuality and involvement in homosexual rights efforts.  Obama has also been called a “groundbreaking president”, and this reinforces that title.

    Bernard’s duties include reporting to Michelle Obama, although most decisions are trusted to the social secretary.  Event planning is often thought of as a woman’s job and requires diplomatic skills and a sense of production.  Even so, people close to the White House think that a man in the position is perfectly acceptable and that Bernard can do everything that previous women have done.  This position is said to be one of the most important in the White House because social secretary’s report to the president and first lady and is one of the best jobs someone could have in Washington, D.C.

    It may seem that President Obama is trying to rebrand the White House image to make it very gay-friendly to increase his votes for the reelection.  It can also be seen as stereotypical that a gay man would be appointed as an event planner, especially since men in the position is already uncommon.  Regardless, the Obama’s have stated that Bernard is most qualified for the job and that he will enhance the young, modern image of the White House that our first family represents.

    bernard454.jpg

    Bernard, left, and his recent ex-partner.

    -Brie Golden