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Confounded Bullshit Station Still Refuses to Run MoveOn Commercial

MoveOn's new PR is simply not helping, and very well may be hurting, the cause. Just when MoveOn.Org is receiving a groundswell of support from the American Civil Liberties Union, National Organization of Women, 28 members of the House of Representatives, Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and more, its PR firm, Fenton Communications, has issued another of its disjointed, lengthy press releases, this one 550 words. And again, the real news is buried.

CBS has not relented, but it is running three ads about erectile dysfunction medications which seem appropriate given the network's limp reasoning.

[Watch the ad and join the protest]

The release says that MoveOn is urging the public to support a one-minute boycott of CBS during half-time at Sunday's Super Bowl game to protest the network's refusal to air MoveOn's ad criticizing the Bush Administration handling of the $1 trillion Federal deficit.

It also announced that MoveOn is spending $1 million in contributions to run the commercial on CNN all day Sunday as well as on cable stations in five states expected to be central to the 2004 presidential election.

At the same time, an email from Eli Pariser of MoveOn announced the boycott and noted -- the real news � the many groups supporting the organization.

Said Senator Durbin, "Is it controversial? Is this ad too hot for network TV? Would America be traumatized and changed forever viewing this dangerous, controversial, 30-second ad? Well, clearly not. This ad makes two factual assertions every American knows to be true. First, it says we are facing a growing national debt, a debt exceeding $1 trillion, which has to be paid off by future generations. Guess what. Those future generations are going to be comprised of our children."

Editorials in the Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle and many other papers have come out in MoveOn's favor.

CBS should change its name to confounded bullshit station.

Categories: Advertising Campaigns, Alternative Marketing, Case Studies, Cross Media, Digital Journalism, Email Marketing, Internet PR, Marketing Strategy, Media Relations, Multi-Media Advertising, News, Politics, Public Relations

BL Ochman | Jan 30 04 4:02 | TrackBack (0)

Comments

Hey, how about one line press releases. You know, something like: Company XYZ is now doing blah blah blah in the area of blah blah blah. For more info: (insert website URL) here - we don't need much else.

Posted by: Mitch Joel at February 1, 2004 9:54 AM

I don't know about one line, but I do think 300 words ought to be the maximum and the format has to be easier to read than a tradtional release. I've written a couple of articles about how and why releases need to be re-formatted for the Internet. They are available free on my site:
- The Traditional Press Release is Dead
http://www.whatsnextonline.com/wno/newsletter19.html

- Press Releases Are a Colossal Waste of Time
http://whatsnextonline.com/wno/newsletter9.html

Posted by: B.L. Ochman at February 1, 2004 7:09 PM

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About BL Ochman

Blogger, social media strategy consultant to Fortune 500 companies, and sought-after corporate speaker B.L. Ochman heads the creative team of whatsnextonline.com. She also publishes the Ethics Crisis blog for SRF Global Translations

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