Press Notices Our Ad's Youtube Penetration

Steven Harmon in the San Jose Mercury News:

A 30-second spot for the ``Clean Money'' Proposition 89 campaign is apparently catching fire in the so-called political echo chamber: the network of alternative, underground, and electronic messaging that drives younger voters to the polls.

The ad, which hit TV markets around the state this week, is the No. 1 political ad on YouTube, where it's been viewed 16,000 times in less than 48 hours, supporters said. That's 10 times more than the Proposition 87 ad featuring former President Clinton.

And it's gone even more viral since its debut. It's being featured on one of the most popular political Web sites in the country: Crooks & Liars.

The clever imagery of the ad -- a giant piston, representing corporate-financed ads squashing people -- tries to drive home the message that political ads are pounding people into submission. Proposition 89, the ad says, will put a stop to them by limiting contributions and publicly financed campaigns. Supporters hope it will awaken the apathetic voter; polls show the proposition trailing significantly.

The ad is so perfect that it doesn't need the saturation our big-money opponent's boring ads need.

``I don't know if we'll pull this off,'' said Bill Hillsman, who created the ad and is the media consultant for Connecticut senatorial candidate Ned Lamont's insurgent campaign against Sen. Joe Lieberman, ``but if the spot goes out enough, people will say this is how I feel, and if for no other reason but this, I'll go out and vote.''

Joe Trippi, the San Jose State University graduate who helped revolutionize the convergence of politics and the Internet as former presidential candidate Howard Dean's campaign manager in 2004, said the ad ``really captures'' the mood of the voter.

``It's the perfect spot,'' said Trippi, a consultant to the Proposition 89 campaign. ``It helps create the echo chamber between the Internet and TV that it will need to make that big move. This is getting moved around pretty virally right now.''

Go see the ad, then make a donation to keep it on the air, and use our online tools to email your friends and family.