MoveOn Launches Obama Ad For MTV And Comedy Central

MoveOn.org has launched a new pro-Obama ad targeting young voters that will air on MTV and Comedy Central.

The ad is the first campaign advertising to run nationally on Comedy Central. Tony Fox, a spokesman for the network, told the New York Times "he did not know why the cable channel had not accepted political advocacy advertising before, but said of the decision to do so now: 'Political advertising in an election year is good business.'"

He also said that this particular spot, produced by members of MoveOn.org Political Action, the liberal action group, was humorous and would be a good fit with Comedy Central's young, politically sophisticated audience. It is entitled "It Could Happen to You" and features Rider Strong, the former star of "Boy Meets World," and Amber Benson of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

MoveOn will spend $150,000 to run it for one week on Comedy Central and MTV, which had not accepted political advertising for more than a decade but reversed that policy a month ago. Both MTV and Comedy Central are owned by Viacom Networks, which has generally weathered the current advertising downturn better than some of its competitors.

Here's the ad:

More from MoveOn's press release:

"It Could Happen To You" was the winner for "funniest video" in MoveOn's recent "Obama in 30 Seconds" ad contest. The ad was produced by and features Rider Strong, former star of "Boy Meets World." Also in the ad is Amber Benson, best known as Tara Maclay on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

MoveOn's ad is in part a response to the airing of an anti-Obama ad from a conservative group last week, also on MTV.

"Young people are naturally progressive, tech-savvy, and hopeful people, so it's no wonder they are becoming MoveOn members" said Peter Koechley, a former editor of the Onion and co-director of MoveOn's youth outreach efforts. "In the next 99 days, MoveOn.org is going to spend a whole lot of time and money making sure that the trend we saw in the primaries of doubling and tripling turnout among young voters continues into November for Barack Obama."

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MoveOn.org has almost a million members under 35 and aims to add another 500,000 through the course of this election. MoveOn's young voter outreach efforts include:

-- Developing a new model for online advertising focusing on persuasion. With TV capturing dwindling numbers of young people, MoveOn is committed to advertising where young people are: on Facebook, MySpace and other sites popular with young people on the internet as well as through search ads.

-- Developing a new suite of online political tools to continue to lead the way in on-line organizing.

-- Developing a new social network canvassing GOTV model. Young people are harder to target using traditional methods of knocking on doors, making phone calls, and sending mail. MoveOn will leverage online social networks to turnout young voters. We're building online tools to allow our members to register and then turnout out their friends and peers (for example, www.votepoke.org).

Here's the conservative ad that's already running on MTV:

Comments

[eladora]

Point of the moveon ad is that target audience are the ones who grew up seeing the egg in the frying pan brain on drugs ads that ran for multi years . Its a play on that and really watching it a couple of times makes it better--which commercials do --it will just prime for later commercials.

[TimmySlagle]

"the ones who grew up seeing the egg in the frying pan"

Yeah, but who hasn't seen at least a dozen take-off on that commercial already?

They're making fun of something from a generation ago, that has already been burned out. It's like a comic still doing Monica Lewinsky jokes.

And Monica was 11 years old when the ad first aired.

[Marlyn]

burned out like TimmySlagle bringing up Monica Lewinsky.

[MDinOK]

I remember going to moveon to vote for the ads. I do remember this one and didn't like it , it was too polite, it should have been assertive. I thought there were others that would have been more effective. I think the anit-bama ad is more effecitive in reaching independents.

[oscartucker]

I love the MoveOn add; it's very refreshing and not negative. Young people (older people too) do want hope! The "Both Ways' ad is silly.

[JRandomPoster]

The both ways one is actually pretty scary. It does what the press has had such a hard time doing; that is, reduce Obama's views and positions to simple sound bytes. This add simplifies slightly differently than a sound bite, though; it takes a complex position and reduces it to an accusation of doublethink.

[TN]

I'm telling you they need to get these ads on regular TV as in non cable. Many people in rural areas don't/won't get cable and will never see these commercials.

[outtosea]

Really?...

You got the guy from Boy Meets World?

[sasse1]

Both ads suck, once again they underestimate the intelligence of young voters.

[castlerider]

From the party that wants it both ways.-
Where a million dollar corporation has the same rights as an individual who has no hope of ever defending his or herself from their illegalities or abuse, but then never has to be accountable for their massive mistakes because the decisions were made by no living person, but a corporate entity, comes this stinking ad where they're going to try to make us suckers to their palying field?

They are so lost in this election. You'd think they'd get a clue.

Total losers.

[lbrillante]

Alright, I am not the target age for this ad but I am a moveon.org member and I thought it was amusing but not that great. I really don't see this ad being helpful to young people making a choice...

[castlerider]

It's not made to be heavy handed. Obviously. But life is good, even if it's a little birds'.

My daughter's 'll love it, and I like that. A lot.

How can that be a bad thing?

[NYRalf]

Both ads are awful.

[cdub1991]

That conservative ad just illustrates how out of touch these conservatives truly are. Why would you even bother to put that on MTV? Let's hope they keep wasting their ad money this way.

[Zhonni]

Ya, point well taken. Most who watch MTV don't vote, they are starting to wake up, but those who do are disproportionately for Obama and they won't buy into that nonsense.

[TNT2008]

Point well made. No negativity or name calling!

O 2008

[rinpochet]

That last two-day ad is playing in ... CALIFORNIA??!!! I live in California and see this ad fairly constantly. What a stupid waste of money. No way he is going to take California.

[sherbug]

Democrats always take California, check your history. Aren't you a long way from Goober Nation.

[Marlyn]

California is true BLUE.

[UCFJayBird]

haha! It's Shawn from Boy Meets World! Is it weird that that's the best part of this commercial?

[novowel4me]

Re: the Repub ad — The only way they could address McFlipper's 180s was to somehow define something as worse then flip flopping — good luck.

[4wehttam]

Great! This was my favorite from the original contest on MoveOn. Targeting as many young voters as possible will help us with a blowout win.

[moongal6]

The "hope" ad was my favorite in the voting for MoveOn. It described exactly how I felt after 8 years. I was also to timid to say I am hopeful. Not anymore. I love this ad. Very powerful.