Tuesday, May 12, 2009

They'll go Neg

After months of anticipation, they've finally arrived. Tory attack ads against Michael Ignatieff!

Will they air? Who knows. It's a tactical shift to leak it out on Stephen Taylor's blog, rather than doing a big press conference in the death star - I'll be very curious to see what kind of earned media these get.



I've always loved the irony of attack ads which attack your opponent for attacking you. I eagerly anticipate the Liberal response:

"Stephen Harper has said nothing about the economy. Instead, he spends his time attacking the Liberals for attacking him rather than talking about the economy. Is this the kind of leader you want?"

As for the rest of it, it's not a bad ad. Solid B+ territory I'd say. Everyone knew "time out of the country" was Iggy's biggest liability, and the "Just Visiting" tag is catchy. They mix in some stuff about the lack of Liberal policy for good measure, mainly so that it can be spun as a "substance ad" rather than just a cheap shot.

So, the real question is what kind of media buy this will have, and whether or not it's the start of a full-blown summer offensive, or just a one-off warning shot, scheduled to deflect attention away from Mulroney.

Labels:

posted by calgarygrit at 7:40 p.m.

21 Comments:

  • They said on CTV/Power Play that it was a viral YouTube ad. Hard to believe they'll have a media buy for this piece of --.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 8:00 p.m.  

  • The time abroad attack is one area where Ignatieff is definitely lucky to have lost in 2006; an additional two years in-country, as a customary presence on TV and in political discussions, has, I suspect, greatly reduced the effectiveness compared to then.

    By Blogger IslandLiberal, at 8:01 p.m.  

  • Overall I thought the ad was actually quite poor. It didn't sound very genuine, which is the main problem.

    By Blogger Scott, at 8:09 p.m.  

  • An attack ad blaming an opponent for launching attack ads?

    What a joke.

    By Blogger Mark Richard Francis, at 8:15 p.m.  

  • "As for the rest of it, it's not a bad ad. Solid B+ territory I'd say. Everyone knew "time out of the country" was Iggy's biggest liability, and the "Just Visiting" tag is catchy. They mix in some stuff about the lack of Liberal policy for good measure, mainly so that it can be spun as a "substance ad" rather than just a cheap shot."

    Grit, you already got the gig at NP, you don't have to curry favor ;)

    I actually think the entire premise is laughable, and I'd advise the Liberals to not waste one red cent responding at this point. That crap won't fly in Canada, that's my prediction.

    By Blogger Steve V, at 8:26 p.m.  

  • I'm not sure I can say whether it's a good ad or not - I've thought every Conservative ad has been terrible since... well, since the Conservative Party was created. Obviously, they've had some success in that period.

    I guess what I want to know is who are these ads really targeted to? The public at large, or the heavy-duty wonk/read-ten-blogs-a-day crowd?

    If it's the public at large, they're a C- at best: the medium's all wrong. If it goes viral, it will go through people who already have very strong opinions about the man, and not likely move any votes.

    If it's to fire up the base, maybe it moves to a B/B+. I'm sure it could warm up those right wing cheque-writing arms.

    By Blogger Corey Hogan, at 1:36 a.m.  

  • I can't see the "Just Visiting" line sticking like the "Not a leader" did in 2007. If the Conservatives are going to attack Ignatieff, they shouldn't be going at him from the same direction and approach as they did against Dion.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 3:54 a.m.  

  • I like the part at the end with the cameras and kiss-blowing. They should use that part a bit more.

    I don't think these ads measure up to "not a leader" though. They need to find some really good clips of Ignatieff saying things that will hurt him.

    By Blogger french wedding cat, at 3:57 a.m.  

  • Strange to use Gretzky though. He hasn't lived in Canada for at least 19 yrs. Been living in the States for most of his hockey career & still living there.

    By Blogger penlan, at 6:57 a.m.  

  • But Gretzky paid Canadian taxes at some point in his life... can the same be said for Mr Ignatieff? That bothers people, the real working class

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 8:07 a.m.  

  • So, it looks like these are internet-only. Not really worth paying too much attention to then.

    By Blogger calgarygrit, at 9:13 a.m.  

  • Saw the add on CP24 this morning. The best part of the add is Iggy blowing kisses at the end. Reinforces the notion that his return is some kind of regal nobless oblige.

    By Anonymous crocker jarmon, at 9:33 a.m.  

  • "But Gretzky paid Canadian taxes at some point in his life... can the same be said for Mr Ignatieff? That bothers people, the real working class"

    No it doesn't anonymous. Im working class and I think it's an ineffectual ad. Really, creating an attack ad to complain about attack ads? Maybe some of us working class are smarter than you are.

    By Blogger Gene Rayburn, at 9:42 a.m.  

  • Check out www.ignatieff.me - they have three other ads (better than this one IMO) hinting there's a TV buy... looks like this is for real.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 1:20 p.m.  

  • "I eagerly anticipate the Liberal response:

    "Stephen Harper has said nothing about the economy. Instead, he spends his time attacking the Liberals for attacking him rather than talking about the economy. Is this the kind of leader you want?""

    The actual response wasn't too far off from this:
    "With no solutions for Canada, Harper predictably tries to change the channel with attack ads. Pathetic"

    By Blogger Jacob, at 1:32 p.m.  

  • I'm actually surprised at how bad these are. While "just visiting" is somewhat catchy the ads themselves are awful. The "tax and spend liberal one" is the only one that is worth them putting on the air. The rest are laughable. Have they changed ad firms?

    By Anonymous John D, at 2:41 p.m.  

  • Quite the ad buy from these goons. Good grief. "Just Visiting"... how about a sullen, angry looking Harper with the tagline "Just Angry" -- because ultimately that's all he is and has ever been.

    By Anonymous CdnBlueGrit, at 4:51 p.m.  

  • only the one official ad for the Internet by the CPC proper.

    The magazine thing pure genius by the rank and file...maybe bloggers.

    Guess they learned plenty from Grit Girl.

    It's out there sinking in to the brains of Canadians now...damage done.

    Kinsella himself teaches in his books that it's best to define your oppo. before they define you.

    All the CPC are doing is defining Iggy.

    Let's face it wasn't it the grassroot LPOC that was supposed to do the defining. This maybe the result of that missed opportunity.

    It's a fair ad.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 4:55 p.m.  

  • The downtown Liberal metro-sexual crowd won't like these ads - they pick too much of Iggy's track record scab.

    The suburban Tim Horton's crowd will ingest these information nuggets, dip them in "what the hell sauce" and use them as information lenses to focus out LPC messaging.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 5:44 p.m.  

  • Is it awesome? No, but will it get people to ponder the 'just visiting'? Maybe. I know that it made me wonder, for the first time, if Iggy would still be in Canada in 5 years if he doesn't win an election in that time. I'm sure he'd say yes if asked, but I wonder...

    For now, a solid B. Now if the NDP would just come out with the 'diamond' Jack Layton vs Square Jack Layton ads (with Star Trek outfit and everything), THEN we'll be talkin'.

    By Anonymous Cory, at 7:24 p.m.  

  • FYI - the ad was airing every commercial break on CTV during American Idol last night, at least for the 1/2 hour that I was watching it.

    By Anonymous Sarah, at 4:11 p.m.  

Post a Comment

<< Home