The media are falling all over themselves in faux outrage over a cartoon puffin shown crapping on Stephane Dion’s shoulder at the Conservative party website notaleader.ca. It’s been yanked, with some lame excuse about an overzealous web designer.
You know, we tried to warn you idiots.
The Conservative official said the type of voter targeted by notaleader.ca at tends to be someone between 18 and 30, who has not yet developed a loyalty to one political brand or another.
“They are anti-establishment, libertarian, web- and tech-savvy, and politically incorrect,” said the Conservative adviser. “We set out to build a website that appeals to them.”
Just more evidence that…
There exists a persistent misconception inside political/media circles that the political interweb is the domain of “tech savvy twenty-somethings”. The Conservative’s website has, in all likelihood, been influenced by this ridiculous assumption and that means it’s time to fire some of the high-priced help. If your web people haven’t even a remedial understanding of their audience demographic, they have no business being involved in your communications strategy.
Hello? Is anyone out there listening? Your web designers and your web audience are two different demographics. Just because the guys behind the scenes writing code are in their twenties, does not mean that the people searching for political content are.
Update: Good point. Flash? The web designers aren’t even good at the tech side.
Oops: Here is a CP article that also mentions Fullard’s nazi-talk near the end.
Also, the article, in a backhanded, almost grudging MSM way, is complimentary to Harper on the whole puffin poop thing.
The National “what”?
In light of Ignatieff’s famous musings about the puffin as a symbol of the Liberal Party, perhaps the poopin’ puffin cartoon was meant to convey a message about the knives behind the Liberal throne?
“An excellent policy announcement ruined by puffin shit.” — Well, I saw this ad and I honestly laughed out loud. It was very funny — esp. since the Puffin Poop idea originated with the Liberals. (Most don’t know this because the MSM did not bother to inform them.) I thought the cartoon was good political jousting. I would not be at all offended if Libs did something similar in that caroon vein. Having said that, Canadians apparently have no sense of humor and the MSM clearly does not. So good that Harper apologized promptly. He must understand that we are a somber and lugubrious electorate.
Gene — “This is what they are spending taxpayer election funds on? ” I doubt that very much funding went into setting up a Web link.
David Akin covered this?
Kate has tackled more important issues and been ignored by Akin and the others Pouters of the PPG, and now he covers this?
He’s desperate.
My wife points out that if this were a proper puffin, then as Professor Ignatieff points out, it would be hiding its excrement. She thinks it’d stash it in Dion’s jacket pocket.
the political interweb is the domain of “tech savvy twenty-somethings”.
They should do more homework. If they did, they’d find out that there are a s#!t load of senior cirizens, many in their 80s like my father, who browse the internet daily. They may not be tech-savvy, but they sure know how to surf the web.
Stupid bloody stunt like puffin poop aren’t helpful to the objectives of the conservative party.
BTW, SDA was featured on CBC Newsworld tonight on this topic. The big time has arrived.
BTW, SDA was featured on CBC Newsworld tonight on this topic. The big time has arrived.
Posted by: John Nicklin at September 10, 2008 12:47 AM
-See, what’d I tell y’all? The blogs matter. What ordinary people think matters. Very, very slowly, the MSM-types are coming to, albeit grudgingly, acknowledge that blogs are a better indicator of public opinion than mere claims made by biased, ideological-agenda-bearing reporter-types.
Citing blogs (especially with so many candid comments) like this one is much better than showing a couple of clips of folks stopped on the street for their reaction to something, such reaction likely tempered with a fearful desire to not appear politically incorrect, often leading to a politically correct comment that might not reflect the true feelings of the person-on-the-street, plus those putting together the news story can always pick the reactions that fit their ideologically biased agenda for the purpose of manipulating public perception, thus essentially goading many to think what the MSM wants them to think.
Clearly, this form of citizen journalism and free-expression participation is an extremely healthy and beneficial, progressive change, particularly vis-a-vis the democratic process. We ought to be grateful to Kate and others like her for having the foresight to pioneer this medium, and for inspiring others, like myself, to get involved with blogs of our own.
All that considered, I’d warn any possible future, so-called “progressive”, far-left-wing, wannabe-fascist regime against daring to attempt to somehow constrain the People in this medium. Don’t try to regulate citizen journalism, Big-Brother-style, ever!
CBC was thrilled that Kate, and Consevative bloggers could possibly speak against the CPC format.
Have they ever bothered to cover the times when Kate and her co-bloggers reveal stuff that MSM was to lazy to cover?
Have to admit …I didn’t see ‘the National last night so I’m only guessing what the theme was..
“Top Conservative blog is upset with Harper Tories”.
Please correct me if I’m wrong…