Being for the middle class doesn't mean you have to be so mediocre

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MbYXOyIwaB4 Christine Quinn is the first candidate up in the NYC Mayor's race. I only have two short comments to make about this relatively generic ad:

1. Even though she appears in every scene in the ad, I never get a sense of who she is, what kind of person, do I like her or not? As I said above, it's all rather generic.

2. The final line: "While others talk about fighting for the middle class, I've been doing it..." Seems slightly ironic because we've just spent :30 seconds with you talking about fighting for the middle class. Yes, I understand she was "talking" about her accomplishments, but still I found it... odd. Maybe it's because the ad is so generic, and I wasn't emotionally invested so I'm nit-picking or maybe it's they're trying to hard to make their point, the ad yells "4" when it should be whispering "2+2."

3. (Ok, I know I said two short comments, so you don't have to read this one if you don't want.) There's just so many issues in the ad, I get it, you're trying to create a sense of what's she's done, the breadth of her accomplishments, but it feels like they're trying to say everything and instead they end up saying nothing.

It seems the middle class is the big issue of the NYC Mayor's race given this ad and the previous Weiner video I reviewed. Frankly I think Weiner video did a better job of being on-emotion, and showing true empathy. This ad is a list of issues, but ends up less than the sum of it's parts.

Beware your friends

If you longed for the good old day of negative advertising. If you've said gosh they don't make 'em like they used to....

Then this negative ad attacking Christine Quinn in the New York Mayor's race is for you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=VfMcURAvsmA

Gosh, from the music the effects to the overbearing narrator, this ad felt like it should be running in the 90's. Negative ads have come a long since then, using more pointed attacks, humor, and just generally not being so overwrought with the negativity. Does the ad have some good points to make, it sure seemed like it. The quotes were all good and tough, but instead of letting the evidence speak for itself, the creators of this ad tried really hard to let you know, these were bad things (as if we couldn't tell for ourselves).

The problem is that there's no room for the viewer in an ad like this. They're telling instead of showing, they're making statements instead of asking the question. It's a classic blunder, the first of which is never get in a land war in SE Asia, and the second is never go up against a Scillian with death on the line.

The ultimate question then is this: Does this ad help or hurt? How could it hurt? As an outside group, coming in attacking the only woman in the race, does it seem too mean spirited? Are they injecting important information into the race or are they beating up on Quinn? Again, I don't question the validaty of their attack, just the tone. The ad is tone deaf. Better to give the quotes straight then ask the question. (Shaking my head).It's clear the people making it hated Quinn, but it's too clear, it seems personal, like they want New Yorkers to hate Quinn as much as they do.

To the extent that this ad sticks and the information gets through it'll be effective. To the extend that it is seen as too negative or just plain mean spirited, it'll backfire.