The Climate Change Strategy

It’s been a pretty good year for Al Gore. Not only did his film “An Inconvenient Truth” win an Academy Award, but he also won a 2007 Nobel Peace Prize. Gore has a lot of show for his efforts to spread awareness about man-made climate change and how we can begin to counteract it.

Initially, climate change, the euphemism for global warming, seemed like a fairly boring topic that most Americans weren’t willing to pay much attention to. Similarly, Al Gore has always come across as a fairly boring man that most Americans aren’t willing to pay much attention to. Who would have that that pairing Al Gore with climate change would result in such a winning combination?

Gore has done an amazing job of creating a strategic plan to communicate the seriousness of climate change to the American public. Gore understands his audience. He wisely used the entertainment industry to spread his message. His documentary, “An Inconvenient Truth” was released in movie theaters throughout the nation, and it was largely made popular by word of mouth. He also appeared on an array of television programs from Oprah to morning and late-night talk shows, making sure his message would reach different audiences. He even paired with celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio. While Gore himself may be viewed as a celebrity, his influence over the American public is nothing when compared to major movie stars like DiCaprio.

Now Gore has an Academy Award and a Nobel Peace Prize, but for many people the issue of climate change may be losing its appeal. Gore is going to have to work hard to keep the issue in the forefront of people’s minds without losing their interest. Who knows what he will do next?


Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21262661/?GT1=10450

Voting in December?

In Friday's Washington Post, Joel Achenbach reported that New Hampshire's Secretary of State Bill Gardner is considering scheduling the New Hampshire primary December! As the legally mandated dictator of the primary date, Gardner said that he is watching to see what Michigan and Nevada decide to do and will make his decision sometime after the close of the filing period for the candidates on November 2.

The controversy arises from a New Hampshire state law that says that the Secretary of State may select any day he or she chooses as long as it is at least one week before any "similar election." While this never presented any significant problems in the past, many state lawmakers have grown sick of sitting idly by while New Hampshire is catered to by a bunch of political superstars all of whom are potentially the next president. Not to mention the tourism revenue it brings in. In an attempt to get a little piece of the action this year, many states have decided to move their state's primary up to January or February. Then, when it looked like all hell was going to break loose from all the states changing their date, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) stepped in and said that only Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina were allowed to hold primaries before February 5th.

At first, I was a bit troubled by the DNC's ruling, as I have always thought that the tradition of New Hampshire holding the first primary discriminated against the other states and because it created a snowball effect for the winner, giving them an unfair advantage in the elections that followed. I thought that this would have been one step towards leveling the playing field. 

After reading Achenbach's article, my first thought was that if New Hampshire held their primaries in December, it would just make matters worse and further solidify the idea that each winner would likely go on to become their party's nominee. However, as I read the article again, I became less pessimistic about the effect of a December primary when I began to think about Gardner's notion that "an earlier date might allow a candidate who did poorly to regroup."  

This made sense! If there was a full month between when New Hampshire voted and the next primary and two months between them and Super Tuesday, all of the candidates could reorganize and get themselves ready for the long haul. In fact, a December primary could disestablish New Hampshire's influence on the rest of the primary. When you take into account that there are 56 days and two of the biggest holidays of the year between December 11 and February 5th (Super Tuesday), I think it is easy to see how New Hampshire could end up having very little impact on the rest of the primaries.

So, as someone who wants New Hampshire to have as little influence as possible this election year, cheers to December 11!

Underestimating the Power of Black Audiences

Tyler Perry’s "Why Did I Get Married?" featuring Perry, Janet Jackson and Jill Scott debuted at No. 1 at the box office this weekend, taking in an estimated $21.5 million, according to estimates obtained by both the Associated Press and by Reuters.

“Married" ended up earning more than the total of both George Clooney’s “Michael Clayton” and Cate Blanchett's “Elizabeth: The Golden Age” films combined. The film grossed $10,691 per screen while playing on a total of only 2,011 screens nationwide.

You can not deny the power of Black films and there audiences. It was quite amazing to sit in a sold out movie theater at 3 o’clock on a Friday afternoon and see a congregation of African Americans come together to support their own. It was great to see a film dealing with real-life issues without stereotypical portrayals of African Americans. “Married” not only sold out theaters here in D.C. but also nationwide bring in an audience that was 90 percent African American and 65 percent female, a demographic Perry knows all to well.

Word-of-mouth buzz and heavy promotion on networks like ABC, TBS, and BET forced audiences to take notice. Perry also used celebrity to bring attention to the film. Along with his faithful church following, Perry was able to market the film to both fan bases of pop icon Janet Jackson and soul songstress Jill Scott, ultimately generating a larger crowd of viewers.

This representation sent one clear message to Hollywood. No longer can you underestimate the power of Black films and there audiences.

Source: http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/newstex/AFX-0013-20224630.htm

A Bruise in Apple's Reputation

According to a recent MSNBC.com article, some believe that Apple’s stellar service is failing to keep up with its rapid growth. Apple’s Mac computers are growing three times as fast at the overall PC market. The iPod is burying competition and the iPhone is the one of the most sought after products in the wireless industry. MSNBC.com reports that as Apple pulls in millions more customers with different kinds of products, it’s getting harder to keep them all happy.

The company has become a case study in the challenges of taking a loved brand with a devoted clientele and broadening its share of the computer market and venturing into new businesses. The customer base is becoming larger and more diverse, and therefore harder to satisfy as a whole. While Apple stays at the top of the computer-customer service satisfaction studies, MSNBC.com reports that for the first time since 2001, Apple is slipped few points. It is important to stress that the findings of the report maintain Apple is still at the top.

Following the controversy surrounding the iPhone pricing issues and restrictions, some people have posted heated entries on Apple-related blogs. Complaints have also risen from supposedly unhelpful store employees and call-center representatives. The recent criticism may be due to the hype surrounding the recent product launches, but it is difficult to weigh their complaints against those directed at the rival organizations. Though Apple may have dropped a few points on customer satisfaction survey, they are still in the lead by a large margin. Having used an Apple and PC, I can say that I have never had the types of problems with my Mac like the problems I had with my PC.

In contrast, Apple reports that their customer satisfaction surveys have shown a rise in the past year. The company says that they’ve invested a lot to become #1 with their phone support lines and 185 Apple stores. MSNBC.com suggests that small cracks in Apple’s pristine reputation can be a sign of a larger problem. For example, Dell shoppers complained about service problems for years before the PC maker’s market share began to drop. Apple’s problems are more noticeable because of the high bar they’ve set for themselves. The devoted fans of Apple will remain loyal as long as the company continues to roll out superior, stylish products. I project that more PC users will switch to Macs as they continue to buy iPods and iPhones. As for the service issue, the products that Apple manufactures have fewer problems than competitors, and as long as people are getting a great product, they will forgive Apple for small service issues.


Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21269419/

Is this the right time to right old wrongs?

Is this the right time to address the proper labeling of a tragedy that happened during World War I? Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi thinks so. She is not backing down from the vote to properly label the death of about 1.5 million Armenians as a genocide, and that has caused controversy between the American government and one of its key allies in the war in Iraq, Turkey, which does not want to be associated with the word.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee voted Wednesday 27-21 to approve a non-binding measure that declares the deportation of almost 2 million Armeniens in the Ottoman Empire between 1915 and 1923 "systematic" and "deliberate." The measure goes on to say that the US believes the deliberation deportation of the Armenians amounted to "genocide," resulting in the death of most of the people. Now Pelosi is pushing for a vote on a House Resolution stating the same thing.

When asked why this is the time to bring the matter to a vote, Pelosi said, "There's never been a good time," but right now is the best time to take action "because many of the survivors are very old" and they deserve to be recognized while they are living. The presence of Armenians in Turkey still causes tension, and the move by Congress has changed the face of the relationship between the country and the US, who relies on Turkey as a transport route for supplies needed by the troops in Iraq.

But others are arguing that after so long, establishing the correct terminology is irrelevant, and may do more harm than good. The Bush Administration is against the vote, stressing the importance of keeping US relationships in the middle east as friendly as possible.

Turkey's General Yasar Buyukanit expressed similar sentiments regarding the resolution. "If this resolution passed in the committee passes the House as well, our military ties with the U.S. will never be the same again," he said, mirroring the statements made by the White House. That sort of back and forth communication pattern is typical during tense periods pre-crisis. If the resolution comes to a vote and indeed passes the House, the communication will likely become even more intense and accusatory between the two countries. Hopefully Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice is prepared to handled a possible crisis that may result from these tensions.

Source:http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/14/us.turkey/index.html?iref=newssearch

Witness Loyalty

The Cleveland Indians haven’t won a World Series title since 1948. The Browns haven’t won the Super Bowl since 1964. This year the Cavaliers made it to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history, and they were defeated in a sweep. Still, Clevelanders are among the most loyal fans in professional sports.

When LeBron James, the Cavaliers superstar and icon of Cleveland sports wore and flaunted a Yankees cap to the Cleveland Indians MLB playoff opener against New York, he created a local uproar and found himself and the Cavs in a public relations nightmare.

Cleveland fans booed LeBron, turned their backs, and screamed at him to get out of their stadium. Cleveland’s hometown hero was rooting for the city to be left title-less for a 43rd consecutive year.

During the game, TBS commentator Craig Sager asked the Akron native, “What the hell?” LeBron calmly explained that he was there “representing the Yankees” and that he grew up a Yankees fan and had to support his team but that he was rooting for the Indians as individuals. Wearing a Yankees cap, LeBron antagonized the fans that love him and broke Cleveland’s collective heart.

The following day, LeBron’s perceived disrespectful behavior had stolen the spotlight from the Indian’s monumental win. Indicating their contempt for LeBron’s stance at the following game, fans displayed signs that stated “No LeBrains,” and much worse.

The Quicken Loans Arena, the Cavaliers stadium which sits just across a plaza from Jacobs Field now sports a large banner on the building wishing the Indians good luck in the postseason. A clear move to divert the negative attention LeBron has garnered.

The Indians have since moved past the Yankees and onto the Boston Red Sox for the American League Championship series, but Cleveland’s fans are not so fast to forget.

During The Cavs’ preseason exhibition game last week, only a few hundred fans were in attendance as opposed to the customary four-six thousand supporters the Cavs have seen since LeBron’s inaugural season.

Since the incident, it appears that LeBron’s media advisors have recommended he stay quiet on the subject, perhaps hoping that the Indians’ continued success will eclipse LeBron’s disloyalty in the minds of the fans.

It will be interesting to see how Clevelanders react to LeBron during the Cavs upcoming preseason games and how the Cavaliers franchise works to recover.

Source: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs2007/news/story?id=3050742
http://fairandfoul.blogs.nytimes.com/tag/lebron-james/

Photo Source: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs2007/news/story?id=3050742

Steriod Use Threatens Image of Sports Industry

Last week track star Marion Jones plead guilty in court to lying to a federal investigator about taking banned substances. For years Jones vehemently denied taking any steroids, but she finally admitted to taking a substance known as “the clear” or THG from 1999 to 2001 which includes her time at the 2000 Olympics.

Her admission has already been costly. She may face jail time, lose her five medals from the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia, and she announced that she is retiring from the sport as a result of her shame.

Jones is just the latest athlete to admit to using steroids during competition. Other track athletes include Dwain Chambers, Michelle Collins, Ben Johnson, and Tim Montgomery. Track and field is not the only sport that has been affected by players using steroids. As time goes on, more and more athletes are pleading guilty to playing under the influence of banned substances.

Individual athletes and the sports industry itself needs to frame this issue very carefully. First of all, they need to be careful not to alienate any of their current fans who might lose faith in the natural talent of their athletes. Secondly, they need to be careful not to turn away any potential fans who may be skeptical of a sport with athletes who use steroids. Finally, the issue should also be framed so that children don’t lose their love of sports and faith in their heroes. Children who are interested in particular teams usually continue to support that team throughout their lifetime. Losing their support could be dangerous for many athletes and teams.

Above all else, the sports industry needs to find a more effective way to keep athletes from using steroids, and they need to make sure that the public is aware of the effort. Without some kind of intervention, sports fans may become jaded and turn to other sports, other teams, or other players. A major image overhaul is needed for the entire industry, especially with the Olympics coming up, or the sports industry could suffer.

Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2007/US/10/05/jones.doping/index.html#cnnSTCOther1