Wednesday, May 16, 2007

INSIDE POLITICS - GREEN PARTY POLITICAL BROADCAST



It's probably the best political broadcast of this election campaign so far. It wouldn't be stretching it to say it's the best ever in Irelnad.

I have misgivings about using children and getting them to use scripted lines, as vehicles for grown-up thoughts.

Having said that, they are essential for the clever punch line - by the time they get a vote at the age of 18, it will be too late. Amazingly shot. Simple sentiments. Staggeringly delivered. Food for thought.

Of course, Fianna Fail is also promising a spectacular tonight, haveing sought and obtained the endorsements of both Bill Clinton and Tony Blair. That was a huge coup! But I just sense that the feelgood factor from the North, the championing of Bertie Ahern as world statesman, will not be enough to turn the tide for FF.

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Talk about interference in the elections of another country. FFers were up in arms over even the hint of an endorsement from Angela Merkel for Enda Kenny. Now we've got Bill and Tony taking sides.

Anonymous said...

I’m sorry, but there’s something really disgusting about using small children as mouthpieces for your political message. Can you honestly tell me that if the PDs had tried something similar, the media would not be up in arms about it?
A child of that age is simply not capable of having a properly informed opinion about political issues – that’s why they don’t have the vote, for god’s sake.
It would be nice to think that this cheap and nasty broadcast might backfire, just as Jimmy Carter was laughed out of office when he announced that he’d consulted his 13-year-old daughter Amy about nuclear weapons.

Stephen

Anonymous said...

Speaking of the Greens, did anyone else see Trevor Sargent's crib notes on the palm of his hand?

Harry McGee said...

Fair point. I was looking at slugger o'toole's website tonight and one of the contributors said that none of the kids were brought out of school to do it. You would not expect anything less.

I presume that some were actors. And some were given mouthfuls of lines to deliver. I don't like to see kids being used to further causes by being told to march around with placards, to give protests a cutesy appeal.

But my misgivings were overcome by the message. It actually needed to have real children for it to work. And it did! Magnificently in my opinion.

Anonymous said...

Sorry Harry, but that sounds as if you think it’s wrong to use kids except when you agree with the political message. I just think it’s wrong, full stop.
I’ve watched the ad a second time and if anything I found it even more repulsive because the cynicism behind it becomes so apparent. To call it the best Irish election broadcast ever is, I’m afraid, a pretty bad lapse of judgement.

Anonymous said...

http://www.progressivedemocrats.ie/filestore/images/hero_items/man_enviro.jpg