Thursday, January 24, 2008
Obama and Hillary
I have never been someone to be very interested in politics; however, this class makes me keep somewhat up to date with the race. What I find so interesting about this race right now is the tight race between Hillary and Obama. After seeing Obama pick up tens of thousands of independents in the state of Iowa, it seems as though many democrats that were Hillary fans are starting to back Obama. I am very curious of how this will turn out??? Obama also has Oprah Winfrey backing him big time. Do ya'll think having a huge celebrity like Oprah helps a candidate's campaign?
# posted by Whitney Staggers @ 2:11 PM 
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I think it helps. Definitely having a big name celebrity with clout (like Oprah) can go a long way. She has her own television show that has a lot of viewers. She's very influential with other areas, I don't see why politics would be any different.
I think the fact that Oprah has endorsed one candidate is huge! Oprah has one of the largest viewing audiences in the last 10 years. I think her endorsement of Obama will either completely win over voters, or completely scare away voters.
Not commenting on why she has chosen to endorse Barak Obama, but I certainly hope that any celebrity with the amount of influence of Oprah, has carefully weighed the reasoning for the endorsement of a candidate. The reason I say this is that I believe that many Oprah viewers may vote for Oprah, and not the candidate.
That being said, I have opposition to any celebrity that comes out for a candidate. I know other candidates have had famous people stand up for them (Chuck Norris for Huckabee, etc.). There is nothing illegal about this, but I think it enables uneducated voters to not think about the election.
Just my opinion.
Not commenting on why she has chosen to endorse Barak Obama, but I certainly hope that any celebrity with the amount of influence of Oprah, has carefully weighed the reasoning for the endorsement of a candidate. The reason I say this is that I believe that many Oprah viewers may vote for Oprah, and not the candidate.
That being said, I have opposition to any celebrity that comes out for a candidate. I know other candidates have had famous people stand up for them (Chuck Norris for Huckabee, etc.). There is nothing illegal about this, but I think it enables uneducated voters to not think about the election.
Just my opinion.
Actually, this is an interesting question. I've read that Oprah has felt somewhat of a backlash from her audience (which is heavily female) because she is not supporting Hillary, a fellow female. The story I read noted that Oprah had toned back her campaigning for Obama and that she had not made as many personal appearances on his behalf in the past couple of weeks. Basically, Oprah can't afford to alienate her audience. When push comes to shove, I think she will choose her audience (and livelihood) over her vocal support of Obama.
A simplistic way to judge Oprah's influence is to look at her book club. Thousands of people take her advice on what makes a great book. It's is likely that her political endorsement could carry the same weight.
On the other hand, she is certainly in a difficult position to make any endorsements. As Dr. Smith pointed out, choosing Obama over Clinton could turn off a chunk of her audience. Could be interesting to study any long term effects on her ratings - but then again, Americans are extrememly forgiving, right?
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On the other hand, she is certainly in a difficult position to make any endorsements. As Dr. Smith pointed out, choosing Obama over Clinton could turn off a chunk of her audience. Could be interesting to study any long term effects on her ratings - but then again, Americans are extrememly forgiving, right?
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