For those of you who haven't read it, take a couple of minutes to
review this outline; it's short and simple. Also skim over Chris Bowers'
The Daily Kos is as Large as the Entire Conservative Blogosphere if you haven't yet.
Point of disclosure: No one 'put me up to this'. Boycott and feedback to advertisers and providers of all kinds of services has been discussed in every media venue for centuries. Those practices obviously precede this crises and this administration. No one at DKos management suggested this to me. And I've received no feedback, zero, positive or negative, from DKos moderators/owners.
The idea some of us had earlier this week isn't based on any grandiose delusions that we can 'bring the media to its knees' via sponsors. But a single, coordinated e-mail effort to the parent companies and sponsors, and a boycott of a few days for a couple of top sponsors, might be enough to distinguish us form the caustic Abe Simpsons of the world sending off LTEs. And if they don't get the message, when the critical Christmas shopping season rolls around we can do it again; times ten. More below on how you can help, some general info, and what I think the status of this is for now.
First of all, thanks for the terrific response! I received scads of e-mails from readers many with their own blogs in the first couple of hours. More has come in since. A number of larger blogs and orgs are listening, some have even committed to helping.
The idea we're discussing here is to be ready send feedback to the sponsors and network of a program still to be chosen with lots of e-mails and boycott, both of which will last only a few days. It's just a warning to stop helping this WH lie. The message is simple: It's ideology Vs our hard earned money flowing to their sponsors. Free market principles.
The bottom line is the bottom line: All companies are driven by sales. Companies exist to sell. And everyday from boardrooms in New York to local branch offices to small businesses, sales are discussed, bonus awarded, and people fired, all based on production. The sales department of most large companies literally runs the company. By providing reader feedback to the sponsors and copying the network we hope to give the reporters and news show hosts some back-up in those hidden executive meetings to be able to do their job without the same degree of management interference we've seen and heard about the last four years.
How you can help: The best thing you can do if you're reading this, whether you plan on participating in a specific cause or not, is to join the DKos Community and others like it, start commenting and posting. Add your voice. It's pretty dawgone fun. It costs nothing, there's no software download involved, Kos doesn't get paid for it and you have to damn near commit a felony to get booted out of here. Be aware of political protests in the real world.
On this project specifically, if and when the signal comes be ready to write a personal e-mail to contact[s] which will be provided. I recommend short, concise, courteous two or three sentence missives. If you want to add more fine. If you lose it and use threatening language, you're not part of this effort. Be advised there's no doubt in my mind that there are spies and operatives here among us who will do exactly that to try and paint this as 'extremism' in the event it actually turns heads. Don't help them. If you use threatening or intimidating language you are not part of this effort. That's your screw-up and the consequences are yours to bear. It's that simple.
Warning: Use healthy skepticism in general when people appear out of nowhere and want to help. Odds are they're totally sincere and want to assist; welcome them by all means. But several real-world activists have relayed stories about folks who popped in to 'help' and got t-shirts and the whole bit: Then a few hours or days later after these new folks were accepted by the respective groups, these unknown new people were oddly called on by anonymous reporters to speak for the entire cause--and proceeded to cough up barely concealed GOP lies. Get it?
If (More likely when) the time comes to act, I'll provide a subject line, a sort of 'code' so that the recipients will know just from the subject what the e-mail is about. If it comes down to it, I or someone will provide a list of publicly listed corporate sponsors and media contacts.
It's important to stick to those contacts, and not go publishing or using someone's work e-mail without written authorization. Do not send e-mails to non-public addresses. Don't post or foul up nonpublic FAX lines or call employees who have nothing to do with PR or customer feedback. Don't do anything to disrupt the flow of commerce outside of your own purchases. This isn't harassment we're after; it isn't personal, it's just business. I specifically do not want to fill up someone's e-mail box or voice mail or FAX over flow basket with this feedback who isn't paid to handle that specific job. I'd also suggest you send e-mails from a personal e-mail account and make certain that you're complying with your employer's policy if you do it during work hours.
Spread the word to friends and family to be ready. Same for blogs and friendly media such as Olberman, MOVEON.org, and/or Air America: Let them know what's afoot and what might be coming at some point. Post the original link on those sites if you wish or write one of your own. If you belong to a web ring, mailing list, or online community where you feel it's appropriate to bring up, do it.
Let's get some ideas on the criteria we use here: I would suggest that having apologists for the WH on a news show is acceptable provided they're not allowed to lie without challenge, rebuttal, or the facts on record being presented at some point in the same show. It's also reasonable to investigate decisions made at state and local levels. That's called 'reporting'. Let the chips fall where they may. I don't live in the affected states so I can't vote in those elections. But I damn sure want the folks who do to get the skinny regardless if a democratic or a republican head is on the platter.
As of today, I'm reasonably satisfied with the media and with developments, especially compared to past performance. I'm not thrilled, but I'm satisfied for now. I also received a couple of e-mails from specific programs: I think they already heard us, thanks to those of you who wrote in!
My friend Ed Brayton said it best with:
The politicians expend infinitely more effort engaging in PR campaigns to convince people that they're doing a good job, or didn't screw anything up, than they expend on actually doing a good job and trying not to screw things up. It's not just that we have lawyers running everything, it's also that we have an army of PR flaks behind them and the whole system is geared to sell an image of competence and engagement rather than create an actual reality that would mitigate the need to sell such an image.
That PR illusion seems to be breaking down in BushCo's case. They're tanking in the polls. A 38% approval rating is an effin disaster! And this after a full-court PR press; I get the feeling the PR is backfiring on them. My take is the networks and reporters feel both emboldened to press the WH hard and they feel that asking tough questions of anyone isn't going to reverse the trend at this point. And as gas rises, more horror stories come out of the pissed off segment of the population that was left to die, as Iraq spins into chaos, the bills mount, the WIA/KIA count grows, as possible future scandals explode, I believe the poor approval rating will setup like cement and drag the supporters of George Bush into the depths with them, unless they cut Bush loose. And that's significant becuase at this point the only thing holding the whole stinking scam called the Bush WH together is loyalty and fear. Any deep cracks in that and they're toast.
It's tragic beyond belief that its taken the spectre of mass graves and live, on air, incompetence, for America to get what most of you guys have been saying for a long time about this WH and the extremist GOP leadership. Now it appears to be sinking in. Those kinds of numbers probably represent a floor of sorts, there may even be a slight rebound. But I think those numbers are here to stay. The media is getting the word out, and the WH looks increasingly fearful while the press room almost resembles a room full of hard-nosed reporters. The hard-line Goopers are getting their heads handed to them. I see no reason at this time to do anything outside of what we've all been doing (Which is a shitload BTW. You guys have actually moved nation-wide polls and driven the media!)
My personal satisfaction is just that, personal. And it could obviously change in a few days or weeks; in fact I'd be willing to wager it will change sooner or later. But I recommend we simply grow in number, work on organization, and for the time being hold off; until and if we have an identifiable target and a truly outrageous regurgitation of a documented, false, Talking Point which is allowed on multiple shows and networks with no rebuttal provided. But that's just me. Let me know what you think. You have the power. Please feel free to discuss all ideas and exchange information--all ideas will be considered. If you have something you'd like to tell me privately, my e-mail is on my DKos homepage.