Watch This: NJDC’s Democratic Dazzling Dames

My Dinner With Andre…actually, Barack

Last quarter the Obama campaign went through stories sent in by their grassroots contributors to form a quartet that would sit down with the Senator over dinner to discuss the race and our nation.

I sometimes want to doubt these things - that it may have been part gimmick, part list-building tool, or part fund-raising ploy - and I don’t know how much of Obama’s massive grassroots financing effort came through the Dinner With Barack contest. In the end the intent and the numbers don’t matter, as it made for great online viewing.

It became a unique time all of us got to spend with the Senator.

Before releasing the clip of the actual dinner, the BarackTV team released a series of pieces talking to the dinner guests. We got a chance to meet them, to actually see their lives, to hear their stories, and to get a feel for what draws them to Obama.

Knowing a bit about the guests made the dinner video more effective, featuring the supporters as characters rather than props in the story.

The dinner itself went very well. This experience was quite different from what you usually get from campaign videos. It was quiet, personal, humorous, and conversational.

If there was anything I’d have done differently, it would have been to combine the guest footage with the dinner into a slightly larger piece, and to talk to Obama separately from the dinner, not unlike the talks with the guests. Get his point of view on what it takes to run a campaign from the bottom up.

Maybe a clip like that is still in the pipeline. Who knows?

But, bravo to the BarackTV folks! Bully for you for a cool project.

Max Blumenthal Strikes Again, Reveals New Generation of Hypocrisy

Last time we checked in on the documentary filmmaking of Max Blumenthal, he was cruising Take Back America, looking for Obama Girl.

Instead of lovely young ladies in “booty shorts,” Blumenthal is chatting up College Republicans at their conference in DC:

In conversations with at least twenty College Republicans about the war in Iraq, I listened as they lip-synched discredited cant about “fighting them over there so we don’t have to fight them over here.” Many of the young GOP cadres I met described the so-called “war on terror” as nothing less than the cause of their time.

Yet when I asked these College Repulicans why they were not participating in this historical cause, they immediately went into contortions. Asthma. Bad knees from playing catcher in high school. “Medical reasons.” “It’s not for me.” These were some of the excuses College Republicans offered for why they could not fight them “over there.” Like the current Republican leaders who skipped out on Vietnam, the GOP’s next generation would rather cheerlead from the sidelines for the war in Iraq while other, less privileged young men and women fight and die. (MaxBlumenthal.com and HuffPo)

Note to conference, convention, and event planners…

Watch out for this Blumenthal character. He walks in with a camera and walks out with the truth.

You Say Tomato, I Say Tomato: Edwards Supporter Provides Context for the Michelman Clip on HillaryHub.com

An oft-cited benefit of internet (and YouTube) politics is the ability for John and Jane Public to fact check what is coming from the campaigns.

Yesterday, HillaryHub.com (from the Clinton campaign) posted video of Kate Michelman talking about the importance of Hillary being in the race:

Nice things to say all around, from Michelman…

But’s it’s not all she said. An Edwards supporter posted the full clip:

In the full clip, Michelman makes it clear that she supports John Edwards.

So there’s just a little example of a campaign trying to forward a message (Clinton pulling pro-Hillary lines from an interview) and the people pushing back with a little context (the Edwards supporter posting what Michelman really was trying to say).

There will be a lot more of this in all directions and from all sides.

Ps. To the Clinton campaign - you’ve mispelled Michelman’s name in your YouTubization of the Hardball segment.

While Michael Moore Breaks the Cuba Ebargo, Patrick Ruffini Breaks The Clinton YouTube Embargo (UPDATED)

UPDATE: OKAY, OKAY, OKAY!!! I TAKE IT ALL BACK…AT LEAST THE PART ABOUT HOARDING HILLCAM TO THEIR SITE. THE CLINTON CAMPAIGN POSTED THE HILLCAM STOPS ON THEIR YOUTUBE ACCOUNT. YOU CAN FIND THEM HERE, HERE, AND HERE.

Following up on this morning’s piece on the HillCam, I thought I’d drop in this post from Patrick Ruffini:

When I first posted the Clinton Sopranos parody video to YouTube, I could hardly imagine it would become the second most viewed video that day, with over 250,000 views. Other versions trailed narrowly behind, fetching at least 700,000 extra viewers. All told, over a million watched the video on YouTube.

That’s not what the Clinton campaign intended. They wanted to have this moment all to themselves, so they didn’t post it to their YouTube channel, instead roadblocking people to HillaryClinton.com where there would be no conversation, no comments, and no pesky video replies. While on the site, they also wanted people to sign up and donate.

You’d think only a Clinton supporter would post such a funny and flattering video of the two, but I saw this as an opportunity to divert traffic from the Clinton web site and perhaps reduce their online take from the video. It was successful, to the tune of a quarter million people who watched it on YouTube instead of HillaryClinton.com.

Now, they’ve done it again with their “HillCam” video of Hillary and Bill trekking through Iowa. And again, they’ve offered a high-res Quicktime download. And again, I’ve posted it to YouTube for them, so Democrats won’t have to go to Hillary’s site to get it. (Patrick Ruffini: Stop the Clinton YouTube Embargo)

I can understand why the Clinton campaign would try and drive traffic to their site using the excellent Sopranos video. They had something completely golden on their hands, and knew it. They leveraged it into something. It was a gimmick, not unlike the Edwards gimmick-video where Trippi and Prince baked a pie. This wasn’t about getting to know Hillary…it was novelty for novelty’s sake…or for the sake of getting email sign-ups.

Somehow, I feel the HillCam should be treated differently. If they really wanted to let people get to know Hillary, why hoard it all to their site? Wouldn’t they want as many people as possible to get to know her…on YouTube, Revver, Blip.tv, Brightcove and anywhere else?

It’s not about sharing the Clintons with you, it’s about what you will give them for it.

Thanks to HillCam, You can know the Clintons so much better

Earlier this week - impatient person that I am - I complained about the lack of releases from the Clinton campaign’s HillCam. It was no sooner than I had hit “Publish” that they started dropping clips, which you see in the playlist above.

I was so caught up watching the Dodd headquarters feed on DTV, that I didn’t get around to my reviews of the now-lively HillCam.

In three installments of the we’ve learned the following:

• There are a lot of white people in Iowa (born in Nebraska, I didn’t need HillCam to know this)
• Politicians go ga-ga over babies
• Politicians will will always stop to listen to firefighters (Rudy Giuliani is exempt from this rule)
• Bill Clinton is comfortable around a fast food counter

Not exactly groundbreaking revelations.

It’s also good to see in the second video that former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack has a new gig. I hear he makes the best blizzards in the midwest!

Before dropping out of the race to serve Derby’s and Dilly Bars, Vilsack had an excellent and very personal vLog - it’s recreated in the player on the ‘08 Videos page

The moment I was really hoping to see (based on media reports from Iowa) was nowhere to be found:

CLEAR LAKE, Iowa — Former Gov. Mitt Romney and his wife, Ann, had a little time to kill before the start of the Independence Day parade here, so they decided to go say hello to the other presidential candidate and her spouse taking part in the festivities.

“Mr. President, how are you, Mitt Romney,” the Republican said after finding Bill Clinton working the three-deep crowd gathering along Main Ave. “This is my wife, Ann, and my son, Josh.”

After introductions were made, Romney observed that “this is kinda fun.”

“How many times you done this before?” he asked.

“Once or twice,” Clinton deadpanned.

“I bet that’s right,” Romney responded with a laugh.

Romney then began to explain to the former president that son Josh had taken it upon himself to visit all 99 Iowa counties in a massive Winnebago dubbed the “Mitt Mobile,” but Clinton seemed to already know.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, appeared Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in the scrum that had quickly developed when Romney approached Bill Clinton.

“Nice to see you!” Sen. Clinton exclaimed to Romney.

Introducing Josh, Romney began to tell Sen. Clinton about his son’s plan to drive around the state.

“He’s been driving around,” Sen. Clinton shook her head knowingly, like her husband, already aware of Josh’s travels.

Proving he had been listening to how many stops Josh had made, Bill Clinton then piped up, “He’s halfway home!”

“Well, it’s a good deal,” Sen. Clinton offered

“How many counties have you hit,” Romney asked, “45?”

“About 50,” Josh quickly responded.

“Well, he’s over halfway,” Sen. Clinton said, demonstrating her knowledge of Iowa’s 99 counties. “You’ve got this built-in campaign team with your sons, boy I tell ya,” she added, good naturedly.

“There’s nothing like it,” Romney replied. “If we had known, we would’ve had more.” (The Politico)

That interaction would have been worth watching! And could have appeared on both the HillCam and MittTV…and everyone loves a crossover episode!

The Clinton Campaign’s HillCam Head Fake

After seeing the enticing trailer above, I waited with anticipation all weekend to see what secrets the HillCam would reveal. On the heels of their big Sopranos splash, where will things go next/

The Clinton campaign is offering supporters an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the Clintons’ 4th of July trip through Iowa next week, with a new addition to the campaign trail–The HillCam.

The HillCam will follow Hillary and Bill Clinton as they travel from Des Moines to Davenport, capturing their spontaneous moments. Taking supporters beyond the headlines, the HillCam will offer an unvarnished look at the Clintons’ first joint-campaigning of the 2008 race. (Hillary for President)

While I was absolutely looking forward to seeing the Clinton’s behind the scenes - which I’ve had the privilege of witnessing a bit on past campaigns - I was more curious whether the HillCam footage would actually produce anything “spontaneous” or “unvarnished.”

So far, Senator Clinton’s best videos have been highly scripted affairs. The trio of song contest videos (I Need Your Advice, Song Contest: Round Two, Sopranos), which culminated with the excellent Sopranos clip made up a very contrived narrative arc. Not that contrived is always a bad thing, mind you. The videos were strong - but were completely void of spontaneity.

Another well-received video was Bill Clinton extolling his wife’s virtues. It was personal, in that way only Bill Clinton can achieve. It was anything but unvarnished.

So, that’s why I was - and still am - looking forward to the HillCam. I want to see if the campaign will let their guard down and really show private moments. I guess I’ll have to wait - as there is still no sign of life from the HillCam…other than the trailer - again, not exactly unscripted.

I’m not the only one sitting in front of his computer disappointed. Over at TechPresident, Joshua Levy is feeling let down, as well.

Meanwhile, where is HillCam? Last week I wrote about Hillary Clinton’s new project, HillCam, which promised a “behind-the-scenes look at the Clintons’ 4th of July trip through Iowa next week.” So, it’s Tuesday, July 3rd, and there’s no sign of HillCam… it isn’t even mentioned on her home page. What’s going on? (TechPresident)

So, like Levy I keep a watchful eye for the HillCam…curious what it will show. Will Clinton continue the video-roll her campaign is on?