Month: January 2009

P&G Only Advertiser to Go Near Rick Warren’s New Venture

Trish

Follow Warren and you, too, can end up like this.

Today is the big launch of Pastor Rick Warren’s “multimedia platform.” A new web site, www.purposedriven.com, new magazine, “Purpose Driven Connection,” an online community, DVDs, you name it, thanks to Readers Digest, Rick is CASHING IN, BABY.

RDA President-CEO Mary Berner said Purpose Driven Connection is much more than a magazine. She sees the quarterly — which makes its debut today after a year and a half of planning — as just one piece of a network, and that readers become members, not subscribers.

“We’re not just launching a magazine; we’re launching a multimedia, multiplatform community,” she said. “That is absolutely at the core of what our strategy is globally and in the U.S.”

Of course, the faithful aren’t getting anything for free.

For an annual fee of $29.99, members receive the magazine, four spiritual DVDs, four workbooks and access to a social-networking website that aims to be a Christian Facebook. The magazine will also be sold in retail stores such as Walmart for $9.99, and congregations get a discounted rate of $19.99 for the entire package.

It’s nothing but blue skies — and dollar signs — ahead for America’s pastor. Oh wait, is that a storm cloud?

Purpose Driven Connection “could appeal to a variety of advertisers,” said Stephen Carlson, media director for Publicis Groupe’s Spark Communications, part of Starcom Mediavest Group, which also owns Starcom, the agency of record for Procter & Gamble.

“Inspirational lifestyle could be a big fit for a lot of people,” he said. “The community has a big following, and if you could connect with that community, there is an opportunity to sell a lot of products.”

Mr. Carlson noted, however, that “there are some things you’d have to give a heads up” about; for example, Mr. Warren supported California’s Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage — and that this might turn off some advertisers.

In the debut magazine issue, Procter & Gamble is the only mainstream brand to advertise. It bought a two-page spread promoting its Children’s Safe Drinking Water effort. All other advertisers were Christian organizations or Mr. Warren’s own products.

Here’s a very safe bet: a boycott on Proctor & Gamble before nightfall.

Florida Republican Vows to Block Bailout

Trish
Mica and his quite natural-looking rug

Floridians don’t expect much from Rep. John Mica (R-Winter Park). After all, this is the guy who pitched a tantrum and stormed out of the room when he realized he couldn’t sit in the big chairman’s chair anymore. It was 2006 and the Democrats had taken control of the House, forcing Mica to forfeit the number one position on the Transportation Committee.

More recently, John risked losing his toupee on camera when he head-butted an ABC reporter at the Republican national convention. The guy had tried to ask Mica questions as he exited the big Tom DeLay lobbyist-funded soiree.

But even with low expectations for this jerk, I am appalled at the constituent email that arrived today.

As Congress embarks on its 111th session, I want to keep you posted on some of my activities and some of the current challenges we are attempting to address in Washington.

It was my honor to be elected for another two year term as the Republican Leader of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Note: Rep. James L. Oberstar (D-Minn.) is the committee’s chair. Mica is only the ranking Republican. I don’t want you to be confused, although Mica might.

Mica seems to have missed the memo about post- partisanship

With a significant portion of the proposed economic stimulus package directed to job creation through infrastructure projects, our efforts continue to keep the measure from being a spending free-for-all. Currently transportation and infrastructure funding will be primarily limited to projects that can be “shovel ready” or under construction within 120 days.

Florida has submitted $6.9 billion in projects that fall into that category. However, only about $90 billion of the proposed $825 billion economic stimulus package is devoted to infrastructure. The transportation and infrastructure portion of the House stimulus proposal includes $30 billion for highway construction; $31 billion for federal and other public infrastructure; $19 billion for clean water, flood control and environmental restoration investments; and $10 billion for mass transit and rail.

It is estimated that every billion dollars in infrastructure spending creates between 28,000 and 30,000 jobs. Approximately 2.7 million jobs could be created with about one-tenth of the proposed package. Having been disappointed with both bailout measures, I believe my vote in opposition was appropriate.

Well I don’t. Job creation is indeed one — and only one — aspect of the economic recovery plan. For Mica, it ends there.

Additionally, I was pleased to name two new Republican Leaders* to vacant Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee leadership positions. Representative Frank LoBiondo of New Jersey will lead the U.S. Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee and Representative Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida will head the Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management Subcommittee.

With a new Congress, a new Administration and significant challenges, I am ready to roll up my sleeves and get things moving. Please know as we begin this new year and Congressional session, I welcome hearing from you.

Mica seems to have missed the memo about post-partisanship. To him, the world is made up Ds and Rs, and you’re either with the Rs or you are to be hunted down and shot like the rotten traitor bastard you are.

This bully and jerk had very weak opposition from the Democrats in 2008, but 2010 is just around the corner and I sincerely hope we do better. John Mica’s Bush-era sentiments are indeed shovel-ready.

* Random capitalization is Mica’s

Suing to Keep Donors Secret, Prop 8er Claims to ‘Have Nothing to Hide’

Jon Ponder

“We have nothing to hide here,” Frank Schubert, campaign manager for Proposition 8, said to the Los Angeles Times, apparently without irony. “We are really trying to protect the privacy of people.”

The real reason for this lawsuit may be nothing but old fashioned greed.

Schubert, who has a gay sister but who nonetheless commissioned Prop 8’s scurrilously false ad campaign, is referring to a lawsuit filed by anti-gay groups that seeks to overturn California laws that require that the identities of donors to political campaigns be made public.

The purpose of the law is to prevent money-laundering. The fact that the donor disclosures exposed a few bigots to their customers, colleagues and neighbors is a bonus.

Anti-gay operatives say the law must be overturned because their donors have received death threats and their homes have been vandalized. But these incidents have not been well-documented, and apparently no arrests have been made.

On the other hand, there have been many highly publicized incidents in which donors were shamed and scorned and lost their jobs when their secret antipathy toward gay people was revealed.

What’s really going on with this lawsuit, however, is likely nothing more than greed. Anti-gay groups have raised hundreds of millions of dollars by fanning the flames of homophobia. With this lawsuit, professional anti-gay operatives and consultants are seeking to give their donors cover so that they can contribute to the next anti-gay ballot campaign operation in secret.

State Attorney General Jerry Brown, a Democrat, and the Fair Political Practices Commission, California’s ethics agency, are fighting the lawsuit, and legal analysts say it has little likelihood of success.

Gillibrand Selection Could Leave House a Little Redder

Trish
New York’s next senator

The Senate’s gain might be the House’s loss. By selecting Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) to replace Hillary Clinton, New York Gov. David Paterson might have given Republicans a new House seat.

Gillibrand — an odd mix of gun control foe and gay rights advocate, anti amnesty for immigrants and pro alternative energy — carried her heavily Republican upstate district, something more typical Democrats might not be able to do.

Gillibrand will take the Senate office Sunday.

Quote du Jour

Buck Banks

It was a complete surprise, completely unexpected. And just like the United States prevailed in that, we’ll prevail in this.

— Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D), quoted by the Associated Press, comparing his impeachment to the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Jews Without News are Clueless

Buck Banks

kosher-but-clueless.jpgI’m on the mailing list of the National Jewish Democratic Council because sometimes they put out statements and position papers that are just a hoot. Today, however, they sent the following statement that caused me to do a double-take:

Ira N. Forman, Executive Director of the National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC), released the following statement:

The National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC) welcomes former Senator Norm Coleman (R-MN) to the fray as a consultant and strategic advisor to the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC). We look forward to engaging with Coleman in our ongoing dialogue over issues and ideas in the American Jewish community. By agreeing to serve in this position Coleman appears to have accepted the inevitable designation of Al Franken as the United States Senator from Minnesota.

What caught my attention was that last sentence, especially in light of all the reporting this morning about how Al Franken’s lawsuit to dismiss Norm Coleman’s lawsuit challenging the Minnesota Senate-seat recount had itself been dismissed, meaning that until Coleman’s suit is resolved, he’s still technically in the race to keep his senatorship.

Possible explanations:

A) Ira Forman knows things no one else knows, like Coleman has decided to give up the race, and just forgot to tell the media or drop the lawsuit.

B) Coleman thinks he’s going to lose the suit, and therefore the recount, and is hedging his bets by setting up some cushy consulting work for when he leaves office.

C) The NJDC is clueless because Ira Forman forgot to turn on NPR or CNN and only read the comics section in the newspaper this morning.

I really like explanation A, and I think B is conceivable, but given my track record with the Jewish Democrats, I am resigned to the fact that it’s probably C.

New ‘Green’ News Site Is Pretty Newsy

Buck Banks

mnn_logo.jpg
At a time when newspapers are imploding, whole newspaper chains are going unsold on the market and the news media are casting about to understand how to serve their audiences in a rapidly changing communications environment, it might not seem the most prudent thing in the world to start up a news organization. But if there’s one trend that is counteracting the collapse of the traditional newspaper, it’s the interest in all things environmental.

Hence, the creation of Mother Nature Network, the brainchild of company president Joel Babbit, a veteran marketing executive. The Atlanta-based site, which just launched this month, was bank-rolled by more than $10 million in venture capital. The company has hired 17 full-time staffers — many downsized by CNN and other media companies — and relies on a network of college-age bloggers. The site could become the standard for green-themed Web sites, strictly by its news content and the sheer amount of information on the site.

With a very magazine-looking graphic design and layout, the site has an eye-catching animated banner that uses compelling photos and catchy writing to grab the reader’s attention and send her to the latest news, trend or celebrity “green” article. Following the news hole where current affairs articles are displayed, eight columnists cover the gamut from business and technology to family, food and lifestyle. A video department offers four short features on varied topics.

Suffice it to say for an environmental news junkie like me, there are whole hours’ worth of stuff to peruse on the site. It also offers a weekly e-mail newsletter, a refreshing change from the daily environmental newsletters I receive that are short, but also a bit light on hard news.

That is probably the single element that will distinguish Mother Nature Network from such sites as Treehuggers.com, the Daily Green and especially the Environmental Protection Agency’s online presence. As long as it can maintain the variety, volume and pertinence of its content, the site should be able to buck the trend of a shrinking, irrelevant news media.