El Gaffney

Getting Young Latinos to Vote

An example of how an organization targeted the Hispanic Youth market online.

I’ve been meaning to post this video (below) for a couple of weeks now since Gonzalo Perez of Motivo Insights showed it at an ESPN off-site. It’s been online since May, so I’m already late to this party. But isn’t that the Latino way! (Don’t worry that’s not whitey speaking out of turn; he and another speaker confirmed this was not just a stereotype that day.) Anyway, Voto Latino teamed up with Declare Yourself to get young (18-29) Latinos involved in the voting process (first and foremost, by getting them to register to vote). This, one in a series of videos, is the result:

“La Pasion De La Decision” definitely seems to resonate with the members of this audience, who embrace their hybrid Hispanic-American lives. They no doubt feel a connection to Telenovelas (whether they grew up with them or through their parents/grandparents) but likely think they are just as over the top as their non-Hispanic counterparts/friends. The message doesn’t get lost in the spoof, IMO, and benefits greatly from the story being played by Wilmer Valderrama (of whom, I’m an unashamed supporter) and Rosario Dawson (of whom, I’m certainly not ashamed fan). Also check out episode 3, for a cameo by Craigslists’ Craig Newmark.

Te sigo amando.

Tags: celebs, genY, latinos, videos

Take It to the House, The White House

It’s hard not to be into the U.S. Presidential race this year. But with the Democratic primary ending a couple weekends ago (suspended not ended, right?) and the NBA Finals in full swing, I was not expecting last week to be a particularly political one. However, as I went through my feeds (horse, not elephant or donkey – okay, that was weak stuff), I found the most intriguing posts and articles were politics-related. And though this blog is not focused on this subject, it’s also not very focused, which affords me the opportunity to combine interests and pass on the stuff I find interesting.

That said, I was extremely delighted to see my buddy, Jake, back on the blogging horse (again, bipartisan horse) with his take on the Veep Selection. As he holds a degree in Philosophy from my alma mater (and mathematics for those counting – I can’t help myself) as well as has lineage in Congress (my father’s father was a mechanic…), I always like to get his perspective in this area. And his thoughts on whom each candidate should choose for the VP position are definitely worth the read.

Out of respect to Tim Russert—did anyone else watch the Remembering show this weekend? So moving—, I wanted to keep the intersection of politics and immaturity to a minimum last Friday. Though the mourning period isn’t over, I did want to pass on these things that made me cringe before they are too out of date:
1. This fake McCain and Montag correspondence.
2. This real Fox headline.

Finally, for anyone who hasn’t seen Obama’s Fight the Smears yet, take a look. There’s a reason he keeps getting positive articles written about his web strategy. Tools like this one, which to paraphrase BFFB re-frame the conversation (smears, not claims) and allow you to spend more time having the conversations that matter to the American public.

Tags: america, obama

Do Day: Inspired by Obama

I’ve never been particularly inclined to write about politics on my blog. There are lots of people (including my friend Jake) that are more knowledgeable about the subject. There a lots of blogs and magazines and shows that are devoted to it. Plus, frankly, I never really cared very much other than to solidify my views on social issues and hate on George W. But that has changed. Now I run home to watch Super Tuesday coverage, not the Georgetown basketball game. (Granted, we were playing South Florida.) I fall asleep to replayed candidate speeches on CSPAN not Scrubs reruns. I seek out more information on their sites and more content on YouTube. I anxiously await the next debate.

And I don’t give dissatisfaction with Bush the credit for this spike in and sustained interest. I was pretty angry in ‘04 as well. I’m excited by the fact that we have a serious female candidate (more so than when we had a Jew as a VP on the ticket) and the prospect of our first woman President. I even like her. However, while she represents a change in leadership (policy and proof that we’ve grown as a nation), she still represents what I find uninteresting and uninspiring about politics. If she and Edwards were the two Democratic candidates left last night, I would have felt a “win” for one vs. the other more critical. Yet I can tell you with certainty, if I watched at all (unlikely) I would not have watched with enthusiasm, with eager anticipation…the way I did last night.

Barack Obama makes me passionate about politics. (Yes, I found myself researching the process of awarding delegates last night.) He makes me believe things can be different. And most importantly, makes me and others feel they must do something. He inspires action (which is what Do Day is all about). I stayed up to watch his speech last night, and something he said hit such a nerve that I got out of bed to find a pen and write it down:

We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.

Tags: action, obama