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Welcome ladies to our AP U.S. Government blog. I want this to be a way to continue our class discussions outside of school. Although your participation is required, this is YOUR blog! I will pick a majority of the topics for discussion, but please let me know about political topics you would like to talk about. Enjoy and have fun!

Friday, October 28, 2011

Herman Cain Ad (Please respond by Friday, November 4)

This ad has been getting a lot of attention in the media for its simplicity.  Other than the recent Rick Perry ad in Iowa, it like the other candidate ones, has been only online. Of course, while Cain's ad is being ridiculed, he is ahead in the polls.  The link is a nice one as it explains how the poll was done and what the questions are. Take a look at these polls numbers from last week to help your response. What are your thoughts on this video? Helpful or harmful to Herman Cain? What type of chances do you give Herman Cain at this moment for winning the Republican nomination?




15 comments:

Anonymous said...

So I'm only doing my blog this early in the week because I'll be on Kairos Thursday night. Anyways, I didn't even know who Herman Cain was until about two weeks ago. I can't believe the poll results, giving Cain 25%. Also, the ad was just plain weird. I have no clue who this Block guy is and I honestly don't care what he has to say about who should be the Republican nominee. Also, it didn't make any sense to have Block talking the entire time in an ad for Cain. We didn't even see Cain's face until the last few seconds, when he just looks and the camera and smiles awkwardly. This video didn't even tell me anything about Cain or why he is better than the other nominees. And why did the people behind the marketing and advertisements for Cain think it would be a good idea for Block to start smoking during the ad? Since Cain doesn't even talk during the ad, Block lighting up gives me a negative opinion of Cain. The only things that this video told me is that Block supports Cain, Cain will 'put the "united" back in the united states,' and that Block smokes. I am still shocked that Cain has more support that Romney according to the polls. While I would obviously rather have Cain be our next president over Obama, he would not be in my top three choices for the Republican nominee, and this video did nothing to help improve my opinion of Cain.

Anonymous said...

Contrary to what has been said before, I actually kind of liked this ad. I thought it was very simple, but then again, when I am watching an ad, I do not want a million facts thrown at me and I certainly do not want to hear about why the other candidate sucks (for lack of better words). The man looked friendly and it just seemed like a happy go lucky ad that clearly stated what Herman Cain wanted to do: create unity within the country. On the other hand, I concur with Maggie on the smoking part. Personally, I thought it was random and unnecessary. I did like the ending though, when they just showed Herman looking happy. I am surprised that Herman is in the lead, since he seemed to just come out of nowhere, but on the other hand a part of me is not surprised because I feel that republicans did want want either Romney or Perry. Cain provided an out for them.

Anonymous said...

I have to agree with Katie. Although I, like Maggie, do not care for campaign ads very much, I do think that this is one of the better ones I have seen. I liked that it didn't give me a bunch of information that I wouldn't evern remember 10 seconds after the video. I think it was good for it to be direct and to the basic point that Herman Cain will do these basics. I like the saying 'put united back into the United States' because I think that is something our country is in need for...unity. It caught my attention and made me wannnttt to learn more about Cain platform and goals instead of being forced to hear about it. I enjoyed to background music because it made me smile. I think the three basic points of unity, getting involved, and taking our country back were three very valid points to give in this ad. I think that this was a good way for Cain to really get his foot in the door since he came up later than Perry and Romney. It was a way for him to start telling what he is about and to draw viewers in and make them want to learn more. I think that this was a direct, happy, inspiring, and well thought of ad (except the smoking part because I can't stand when people smoke). I think this ad will benefit Herman Cain because it will help people to start noticing him more and get him recognized. If Cain keeps doing more to make him open to the public eye, I think that with a little bit of time he will be just as popular and in the running as Romeny and Perry. If he pleases the people, is well spoken, and has a well developed list of goals and beliefs, then I think that he definitly has the potential to beat out either Romney or Perry.

Anonymous said...

I honestly had no idea who Herman Cain was until a few weeks ago. That being said, I don't know if he would be a good Republican candidate for Presidency. I personally liked the AD. It was very simple. I liked that it was someone close to Cain saying why he would be a good candidate. On the other hand, I don't know if this will necessarily help Cain. Not many Americans can relate to the old man smoking image that Block takes on. Therefore, this may not visually influence the American people. And let's face it, a majority of Americans do not actually listen to the ads. They just look at the pictures. I do not think this ad will help Herman Cain very much, but I do not think it will hurt him in anyway. I am very surprised that Cain is at 25% in the polls. I have not heard very much about him so I am surprised that he is more approved of than the well-known Mitt Romney. I think that if his approval rates keep going up as they have over the past weeks, Cain has a good chance of becoming the Republican candidate for presidency.

Anonymous said...

I, along with Maggie and Andi, am not a very big fan of campaign ads mostly because they are always so negative towards the other candidates which I think is just a waste of time. I liked how this ad was pretty positive in that it mainly promoted Cain. But I also thought that it was pretty weird. It is unlike any campaign ad that I have ever seen before. I think this ad does have some possibility in succeeding in gaining more support for Cain because it was really laid-back and plainly stated what Cain is all about, creating unity. However if you are looking for more in depth information about a candidate, which most voters are, this video would not be all that helpful. Also I really don’t know why they thought it would be a good idea to have him smoking at the end. It made me laugh a lot.
I was surprised that Cain was ahead in the polls because I haven’t heard too much about him. I don’t think he’s going to win the Republican nomination but you never know. He’s all over the news right now for whatever that scandal was about so that could really hurt him in the election, especially when it’s only a year away.

Anonymous said...

I think that this commercial was, for a lack of a better word, boring. It had no information about the candidate, and for the most part, I am sure that many people have never heard about the guy that was representing Cain. The music and the cuts were choppy and confusing, taking away from the message of the commercial. Also, I think that the guy wasn't a very good speaker, and he seemed a little disjointed in his presentation. This commercial struck me as uninformative, bland, and a waste of campaign funds. Also, at the end of the movie, there is a shot of him randomly taking a drag from his cigarette. Is this supposed to be some kind of statement? I don't understand the symbolism at all. I don't think that this either helped nor harmed Herman Cain because it wasn't controversial, it was just a bad commercial. So I don't think that this commercial will harm his chances for the White House, but if he doesn't start dealing with this harassment scandal, whether true or not, it will show that if he cannot deal with this relatively small issue, he is not fit to be the president of the United States. That is what I think will hurt him, much more than this commercial.

Anonymous said...

This ad is something I have never seen before, and I actually like it. Most or I should say almost all political ads can be negative and bash another candidate, a certain issue (issue 2), etc. It is so annoying to see the same thing done over and over again such as don’t vote for this person because of blah blah blah and at the end it will say “this ad was paid for from the people that support the opposite candidate or the opposite candidate will say I approve this message”. I think this takes a new spin on the political race in the media and hopefully we will be seeing more of it. As far as the content of the ad, that is another story. I don’t understand why Cain himself didn’t speak and why he had a random guy that works for him do it. We obviously know you like him because you work for him and get paid. It was just weird having him talk and he really didn’t give out any good information on why we should like Cain too. I think the idea of the positive ad was a great one and I liked the upbeat music in it too. However the smoking thing doesn’t really make sense and just leaves people confused. Or maybe that is part of his strategy, to get people to think about him and have the ad be discussed. I think in some ways this ad is helpful to Cain because it gets many people talking about him and wanting to know more about him. However, it could be hurtful because many people don’t like it, some people don’t like change, and the smoking thing could offend people. And Herman has really come out from nowhere! It is crazy to see that he is leading the Republicans right now. It could be because people are so unhappy with the other choices that everyone is looking for a fresh face to find the best candidate. I don’t know enough about him yet to say if he has a chance of winning the nomination, but I do know he has some work to clean up the scandal he is involved in right now.

Anonymous said...

I Honestly have mixed feelings about this ad. On one hand it was simple and explained the importance of unity in a country. The man who spoke encouraged people to take action in order to help improve the current situation in the United States. I believe that many people have stopped caring about the United States government because the voting records are low. This ad encourages people not to give up on the government. I also like that the man is hopeful for the future and he mentions that we need to work together as a country in order to improve the current situatin. However I did not like that Cain did not speak during the ad. I believe the best way to get to know a candidate is to listen to what they have to say, not have someone speak for them. At least not someone on their payroll. I also did not understand the puff of smoke at the end of the ad. To me it seemed arrogant, and that he acted better than everyone else. I believe that Herman Cain has a lot to prove the the public. I believe his lead in the polls was a caused by people not liking the other candidate and they viewed Cain as someone new and different, but didn't really know much about him. Now that the public is learning more about him and what he did years ago, I believe that his chances of winning are very slim.

Anonymous said...

In all honesty, the ad is completely pointless. Sure it promotes that Cain will unite our nation, but to me it wasn't really effective. The simplicity of this ad is a little too simple, which I think is harmful to his campaign. Who would want to vote for Cain after seeing one of his associates smoke a cigarette? Sure some people don't mind it, but to be in the public eye, I would think you would want to promote yourself as being healthy and not adding any controversial messages, especially in your campaign ad. It's also surprising to hear that he's ahead in the polls, however, I don't think that will last to long especially since he is connected to a sexual harassment scandal, which doesn't promote him in a positive light. Therefore, he might be ahead in the polls, but I feel that his popularity will eventually fade out once the truth evolves.

Anonymous said...

I thought it was an odd way to put out a message for a potential president. It certainly has garnered a lot of free publicity which Cain is in need of considering his allegations of sexual harrassment. I believe it is both helpful and harmful to Cain's bid to become the Republican nominee. It is beneficial because he is getting wide publicity yet there are negatives that can be taken from it. Such as people who are anti-smoking may be offended by his tactics. Technically he is the front runner for the nomination, however, he does not have the money or the organizations of Romney and Perry to win.

Anonymous said...

I have heard on Herman Cain before watching this video for the blog this week. At first I didn't really mind him and actually would have liked to see him win the Republican nomination, but then the three women stepped forward to report Herman Cain committing sexual harassment towards them. I do not think this looks good for his presidential nominee chances. In the end I was quite surprised that his approval ratings were as high as they were, October 25, but that might have changed since the three women came forward.
I think that this video had no depth to it as it was just Herman's close friend talking about all the 'wonderful' aspects of Herman Cain. This video did not include information on Cain's platform or what Cain personally believes in. The ad didn't even have Cain in it! Personally I do not think this video will affect Cain in a negative or positive way, basically it was a waste of money and time. Maybe it will get a little media attention for the smoking but even that was pretty silly on the campaign managers part.
I do not think that Herman Cain has a chance at winning the Republican nomination at the moment due to the media attention directed recently towards his behavior towards women. Unless Cain can come back and handle the situation with grace and maturity I think Perry or Romney will will the nomination.

Anonymous said...

Honestly, to tell the truth, I was slightly creeped out by this video. At the beginning it is fine talking about Cain and his campaign, however, by the end of the video with the guy smoking and Cain’s freaky smile, I was definitely turned off. I know that sounds unprofessional, but that is how I feel about it. I don’t personally know that much about Cain, and like many of my classmates have said, this campaign video didn’t do much to tell me who Cain is and what he stands for. I also didn’t understand at all the point of the man smoking at the end. If I anything I think that would have turned people away from Cain. I believe that that was a bad decision on his part due to the fact that many Americans today don’t like smoking today and its effects on people. Moreover, this video didn’t do so much to help Cain. It seemed very insignificant and didn’t have much important information in it. I know that it was said that Cain had the highest ratings in the polls, however, I do not think that that will be the case anymore. The main reason for this is about his latest scandals. Three women have apparently confessed that Cain has shown some type of sexual harassment towards them. He has not commented on these accusations, however, I don’t think that he will be the top runner in the polls anymore. I don’t even think that he has a high chance at all at winning the Republican nominee. There are too many unanswered questions from Cain for the American people to trust him with the United States presidency.

Anonymous said...

I find this add to be boring and a waste of my time. No useful information was given to me in this ad for Cain, the points this Block dude made were short and non-descriptive and the filming was mediocre. I feel like his poll rates are downright absurd especially if this is how the public is seeing him in each of his adds (or should I say not seeing him, since he was only in this video for about 10 seconds). I also did not like how Block was smoking at the end of the video. It sent a message that he has bad habits and it does not look classy or professional; which are two traits that we for sure do NOT want in a president, or even a president's campaign manager. Basically I just do not understand how Cain can have such high poll results, and frankly I am disturbed especially when there are great other Republicans out there that should have those poll results (*cough cough, Chris Christie cough cough*). SO yeah. Chris Christie for President, goodbye Herman Cain and his uninformative and disturbing ad campaigns!

Anonymous said...

I'm kind of at a loss for words after watching that video. I can't decide how I feel about it. Part of me likes it because it is simple and positive. But the other part of me dislikes it because it is not creative, nor really interesting to watch. Also, what relevance does Block smoking have on the campaign whatsoever????? I feel like this ad did not help Cain at all, because it was very vague, saying that "there is no candidate like Cain" and "he's going to put the 'united' back in United States." However, the only thing that could possibly hurt his campaign is that Block lit up at the end of the ad. People who are against smoking could change their opinion of Cain completely after seeing that.
I don't really know the chances of Cain winning the Republican nomination because, frankly, I didn't even know who he was until a week ago. I feel that he isn't well known, but the polls show do otherwise. I'm shocked that he is beating Romney. At this point of our economy, anything can happen. Our country has been faced with sooo many surprises, it's hard to predict what will happen next.

Anonymous said...

While I liked the way this advertisement was formatted with its simplicity and the background music, I do not think that Mark Block is a very good or influential speaker. I liked what he said because it was not overcrowded with useless facts, but the way that he said it was not convincing whatsoever. I think the way Mark Block started smoking at the end of the campaign ad was just setting a bad example for Americans, but because many Americans do smoke, they may feel like they can identify with Block and Cain. It seemed like that this advertisement was trying to convince Americans that Herman Cain would be able to unite America simply because he is easy-going and accepting of people, but I think the fact that the smoking was included was out of place and unnecessary. I do not think that the smoking aspect of this ad will necessarily help or hurt Cain’s campaign because there are Americans who are smokers as well as people who really oppose smoking. Because Cain is not extremely well-known, it surprised me that he was in the lead for approval of possible Republican nominees. I think that the overall effect of the ad will not be particularly moving in convincing people to support Cain due to its lack of ability to persuade people. At this moment, I do not think that Herman Cain has a very good chance of winning the election because of the recent news of the accusations of sexual harassment. Even if these accusations prove to be false, the drama of the situation will annoy Americans.

After hearing some of the main points President Obama described in his State of the Union speech, do you believe he is taking America in the right direction?

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