I Got a Crush on Obama. Haha, just kidding.

Before I moved to DC, I lived in New York. And in approximately two months, I’ll be moving back. I cannot wait. My life was loaded with great friends, a fabulous social life and a kick-ass wardrobe all crammed into a tiny apartment in Greenwich Village. It wasn’t like the TV shows and movies. It was better. Among my great friends was a girl named Amber. You probably know her as “Obama Girl.”

 

 

Amber and I met in New York when we were both waitressing until we found better jobs, “real” jobs. Typical story, right? Girl moves to the city. Girl gets a job as a waitress. Girl has the time of her life.

 

We have both moved on to different things, but speaking as someone who knew Amber personally, I can say that this girl is the real deal. She’s forthright. She works her butt off. She’s genuinely a nice person. And she’s smokin’ hot, but of course you already know that.

 

Amber was born to be in front of a camera. She has a presence. She gives 110% to every project that she takes on. But without the internet and a campy video about a presidential candidate, who knows if Amber would have been “discovered.” She definitely should have been, but I’m biased.

 

Whether it was foresight on the part of her management team or just dumb luck, Amber chose a hit when she partnered with the makers of ‘I Got a Crush on Obama.’ Thanks to the internet’s distribution of the video (and its subsequent follow-ups), her Web sites, virtual real-time updates with Obama Girl appearances and live chats, not to mention all of her traditional media appearances from Fox News to the Today Show, it will be hard to think of Barack Obama’s run for the White House without thinking of Obama Girl. You can also check out the video at barelypolitical.com, the makers of the Web hit.  The internet has blasted her into fame, but the internet also has a funny way of turning fame into infamy. Whether or not this will last for Amber remains to be seen. Here’s hoping that she has a top management team to advise her and that her star keeps rising.

 

I have posted two candid photos of Amber and me hanging out, one taken in Vegas, the other in NYC. The official Obama Girl Web site is pretty interactive with videos, pictures, or just to post comments. Or check out her personal Web site for a bit of background, more photos and all that good stuff. See, it’s like you know her too. All thanks to the Web.

“Blue Balled” the Video

Edgy, hip and cool are words that describe the latest attempt of Democrats to gain more votes come November.  “Blue Balled” is a four-minute video circulating the Web and is gaining popularity every day.  Here is the run-down:  Hot girl comes on to cute but clumsy guy at a bar.  They go back to his place to have sex, but hot girl discovers that cute, clumsy guy is a <gasp!> Republican and bolts.  Visibly upset, hot girl drops her purse outside cute, clumsy guy’s apartment, but is rescued by edgy, cool, hip Democrat man <hooray!>. 

 

 

 

The lesson here, kids?  Democrats are good at everything.  Or is it that Democrats are slutty? 

 

Whatever the case, this video is probably getting more hits than its female character did in her promiscuous life.  I’m not being a hater.  While hooking up in the cab on the way to his place, hot girl calls cute, clumsy guy the wrong name.  Nice.  And after discovering the horrifying Republican news, as she’s hi-tailing out the door, hot girl actually says, “Just like the last one.”  Maybe the lesson is that if you want to get laid, break out your ‘I heart Obama’ lapel pin. 

 

According to ABC News, this video and the people behind it further affirmed that the internet is a “central character” in the election.  And the folks at truththrouthaction.org are planning more entertainment on topics like Iraq, the economy, taxes and healthcare.  The group brilliantly uses the internet to get its message out.  News shows are debating the video, young voters think it’s funny and are forwarding it to their friends, and even those who find it ridiculous are discussing it (ahem, moi). 

 

Young Republicans are reaching out to young voters via the internet as well, but apparently in less edgy, hip and cool ways.  Sex definitely sells. I just didn’t think it could buy votes.  Maybe this won’t convince people to vote for Obama, but it’s another feather in the cap of trendy politics, and the internet is once again the conveyor of the message.  And it has people talking about Obama.  That’s the point, isn’t it?  He personally had nothing to do with the video, so he’s not promoting one-night-stands, but it sure is clever. 

 

I’ve never had a one-night-stand, but I do agree with slutty girl on one point:  It’s better to sleep with people who belong to the same political party you do.  No one wants to go to bed angry at their partner every night.  So kudos to slutty girl for holding on to what may be the very last of her principles.  And kudos to the Democrats for an edgy, cool and hip video.  I’m sure those traits will come in handy when the next president is dealing with terrorist threats and open borders. 

Too Cool for School?

When does too hip become too hip?  First Obama “brushed the dirt off his shoulders.”  Younger voters knew what that meant and from where it came.  It’s a great song.  It’s not a song that should be included in a presidential campaign speech though.  I highly doubt that the man in the blue shirt behind and screen right of Obama knew what it meant.  Who knows, maybe he listens to Jay-Z on his iPod too.  Or maybe he just followed the crowd’s cheering and was swept up in the moment even though he didn’t know what it meant.  My guess is for the latter, in which case that man looks like an idiot.  Dozens of videos showing this Obama moment are available on YouTube as well as on other interactive, opinion, etc. sites online.  YouTube alone has recorded several hundred thousand views, and that tally doesn’t include any other campaign highlights.

 

 

And then came the Michelle/Barack fist bump (which I had always mistakenly referred to as a “hand pound,” so thanks to Mr. & Mrs. Obama for clearing that up).  Even the older generations cannot mistake this for something else.  This video has also received hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube and has provided fodder for newscasts and pundits across the country.  In my humble opinion, pop culture has infiltrated nearly every corner of our existence.  As a former employee of the Washington Post, I used to get a kick out of telling people that the most viewed page on the newspaper’s Web site was the entertainment page.

 

 

 

It’s refreshing to see politicians not taking themselves so seriously all the time.  And it’s nice to see Obama have a moment with his wife, even if it appears to have been scripted. Obama is pulling out all the stops.  To the younger generation, he is just cool.  Kind of like in the way that, back in the day, Clint Eastwood was just cool.  No need for explanation – one look and you can just tell, this guy is cool.  The older generation may not get the Jay-Z “feeling like a pimp” tie in, in which case, no harm is done.  And maybe Obama was feeling like a pimp that day, but I doubt it. 

Was the Clinton Campaign Technologically Challenged?

The well-known spin off of the Apple/1984 pro-Obama/anti-Hillary ad probably sticks the mind of voters.  It is unlikely that the ad changed the vote of pro-Clintonites,  however, undecided voters searching for their candidate absolutely could have been swayed.  And the 1984 ad came from a voter; it didn’t come from Obama’s campaign.  Yet another innovation in the world of politics allowing anyone to post electronic information that actually has an impact on a presidential election.  And what demographic posts the majority of information on YouTube?  The younger generation – a.k.a. the generation who is more likely to vote for Obama. 

 

Where many thought Obama’s newness would be a detriment to his campaign, it only helped him.  Clinton’s seniority seemed to be the detriment.  Hillary already had a history with voters and the public, so it was harder for her to reinvent herself to be a hip, up-to-date, new-media Web presence.  The history of the Clintons in the White House, another four years of Bill (essentially) in office, 3 am phone calls, sniper fire in Bosnia and Bill’s constant gaffes that made him seem like a grumpy old curmudgeon didn’t help the Clinton cause. 

 

 

 

 

Even Hillary’s crying didn’t come across as genuine, and voters were turned off. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hillary’s speeches were excellently prepared and written, but it was hard for me to believe that she believed what she was saying.  Maybe Obama is a better actor, which definitely fares better when clips are played to infinity on the Web. 

 

 

Gens-X & Y might not search the internet for political information as readily as they would celebrity gossip, but it’s a little different when Barack Obama is your friend on Facebook.  It’s cool.  You’re involved in what’s going on in your country.  You can hold an intelligent political conversation (with your friends, at least).  So the younger generations can still heart America without being that guy. 

 

A new age of politics has definitely been ushered in with the 2008 election.  A Web presence was felt in 2000 and 2004, but those elections don’t compare with 2008’s Web involvement.  McCain should look to hire a team of Web experts (or upgrade the one he currently has) to keep up with Team Obama until November.  A tremendous amount of votes is up for grabs by taking advantage of this new electronic medium.  Obviously, Hillary’s lack of new-media involvement didn’t solely sink her campaign.  But it is unfortunate for her and her supporters that, of all the stellar advisors surrounding the Clintons, this was missed.