Posted Jul 23, 2010 by Khaner Walker - Account Supervisor |
Whenever your rival school’s athletic program gets in trouble for something, it’s hard to not gloat. Well here at FWV we’re chock-full of Heels and Wolves and we’ve all basically fine-tuned the art of gloating to a science.
With that disclaimer, I’ll jump into what we’re really here to talk about, the funny intersection of college sports and politics.
Secretary of State Elaine Marshall is running for the U.S. Senate and make no mistake about it, she’s running hard. The first female to hold a statewide office in N.C., she enjoys a political machine from Murphy to Manteo that’s been fine-tuned since stepping foot into office in 1996. She’ll need every inch of that network and every outstanding favor from the past 14 years if she’s going to beat incumbent Richard Burr (see Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Burr?).
That’s why it came as somewhat of a surprise that led to a, “Well that’s smart” when I heard her on sports talk radio station 99.9 “The Fan” decrying the recent UNC-Chapel Hill/sports agent debacle. (I won’t delve into the story but the N&O has a good article on it here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/07/23/593879/davis-ncaa-will-rule-quickly.html).
Similar to how Marshall’s office polices the practices of businesses and lobbyists, she made the smart move to do the same for sports agents on the campuses of our 16 public universities – knowing North Carolinians keep their Tarheels, Pirates, etc., very close to their heart.
When I was a young boy I remember going to the State Fair and hearing over the loudspeakers, “Welcome to the North Carolina State Fair. I’m Commissioner of Agriculture Jim Graham…..” A brilliant politician and master of marketing, the “Sodfather” was one of the state’s longest-serving politicians (1965-2000). I’m sure the hundreds of thousands fair-goers associating the good times of the fair with him might have helped him there.
While elected officials aren’t supposed to use their office for election purposes, the line between politicking and state business can be a murky one. Marshall has shown a masterful move here and appears to be getting ready for a tough fight by pulling out the brass knuckles and chains – tactics she’ll need to win.
As we get closer to Labor Day and the “official” start of campaign season, we’ll see if Elaine has the grit and more importantly, the cash, to make this race winnable. As of right now, it’s at least shaping up to be a good one to watch.
Oh, and hahahaha @ Tar Heel “Nation.”
Posted Jan 15, 2010 by Khaner Walker - Senior Account Executive |
NC GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Republicans always say “this is our year” however it rarely pans out. There are a handful of competitive districts in the state and in those districts Democrats simply outspend Republicans.
While Tom Fetzer, the new chairman of the N.C. Republican Party, brings a lot of youth, energy and new ideas, it's offset by the party's same legislative leaders (Stam in the House and P. Berger in the Senate) who simply cannot come close to matching the fundraising prowess of state Democrats.
NC House – If speaker Hackney (one of the smartest men I know) says he can pick up more seats, I believe him.
NC Senate – While Basnight's power is waning, he still has enough campaign funds to make the world go round. Democrats maintain their majority, Republicans might make a few gains: Boseman’s seat in New Hanover Co., Hoyle’s in Gaston, (both swing/Republican districts), etc.
CONGRESSIONAL RACES
Our state’s history teaches us its voters are oddly dichotic when voting for the United States Senate. Food for thought: Jesse Helms and John Edwards represented N.C. at the same time (Helms the bastion of Southern conservatism and Edwards the second-most liberal Democrat in the Senate by the time he ran for the White House in ’04).
Since the split of Southern conservatives from the Democratic Party during the 1960’s, N.C. has seen six Democrats (Jordan, Ervin, Morgan, Sanford, Edwards and Kay Hagan) and six Republicans (Helms, East, Broyhill, Faircloth, Dole and Burr) fill the office of US Senator.
When sending folks to D.C., North Carolinians like a good mix. Of our delegation to the U.S. House: 7 D and 6 R. To the U.S. Senate: one and one. Don't expect much, if any, turnover of the state's congressional delegation in 2010.
US Senate – Burr wins by 2-6 points, doesn’t matter who the candidate is.
US House – The only one in true contention is Kissell’s (NC-8). A swing district, able Republican challengers and an upset base of Democrats will make for fun watching. No matter what polling says, this one is too close to call. Expect a heated general election with lots of mud slinging.
Posted Jan 8, 2010 by Khaner Walker - Senior Account Executive |
I met with North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue two weeks ago and it was clear to me that the mental health care system was an issue at the top of her agenda. 2009 saw huge blows to funding – about $75 million in services were cut, coupled with a loss in Medicaid dollars pushing the total shortfall to around $400-500 million (yes we don’t know the exact damage, it’s that bad).
Revenue woes aside, the system is broken. Legislators have been happy to throw money at mental health care, however the situation has gotten steadily (if not rapidly) worse. The switch from state-provided services to local community providers is not working out.
Spurred by the Governor, legislators will take a look at the system and some semblance of a plan should emerge. North Carolina has one of the best hospital systems in the country. Why don’t we incent them to take on more?
Posted Dec 18, 2009 by Khaner Walker - Senior Account Executive |
2009 was a trying year for North Carolinians and none more so than for our elected officials. Faced with a gaping revenue hole of about $4.6 billion, the General Assembly chose to split the baby by raising revenues and cutting services. Coupled with Obama’s aggressive national agenda and the ensuing social unrest, you could easily ask yourself, “Can we handle any more?”
Well if you’re looking for 2010 to be a year of calm and recovery, I’d stay indoors. As we take a look at what ye’ ole crystal ball has on tap for next year, I'll begin this new blog series "What's Next in NC Politics?" with a look at taxes.
Taxes
A select committee of the General Assembly met three times after the ‘09 long session on tax reform. Long have pundits on both sides called for sweeping changes in North Carolina’s tax laws – however as always the Legislature is reticent to do anything too drastic as the measures usually died in the NC Senate.
Expect that to change as liberal Democrats seize power from pro-business Democrats. Stalwart Democrat Senators like Rand, Hoyle and even Basnight have or are fading from the scene and taking their place are a younger generation of liberal reformists.
Led by new majority leader Martin Nesbitt (an Asheville progressive), Nesbitt has the clout, experience and shrewd ‘maneuvering’ skills to push tax reform. Less importantly, I think the chamber’s liberal cousin, the NC House, will, as always, be along for the ride.
Next week on "What's Next in NC Politics?", we'll take a look at Mental Health Care Reform.
Posted Nov 19, 2009 by Khaner Walker - Senior Account Executive |
As mentioned in last week’s post “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Burr?,” North Carolina Democrats are having trouble fielding a top-tier candidate to challenge Sen. Burr next year. With recent news of heavy-hitting contenders Dennis Wicker (former Lt. Governor) and U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge (D-Buies Creek) bowing out of contention this week – the situation has gone from bad to worse for the Dems.
While many politicos believe Burr is a beatable candidate, opponents are reading the political tea leaves by looking to elections held earlier this month (elections where Democrats lost handily to Republicans in NJ and VA statewide races). The number one issue on voters minds in those races? To quote Democratic consultant James Carville, “It’s the economy stupid.” The economy was the major concern for the overwhelming majority of voters in NJ and VA (89 and 85% respectively) according to exit polling.
The 2010 mid-term elections will be decided on the state of the U.S. economy. If it’s good, Obama and crew will maintain current majorities, maybe even picking up a seat or two. If it’s bad, Republicans will win and win big.
Wicker and Etheridge are among the sharpest tools in the shed. Their announcements signal tough times ahead for Democrats in 2010’s mid-term elections.
Posted Nov 4, 2009 by Kionna Coleman - Senior Account Executive |
When the Federal Trade Commission issued its revised Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising on October 5, people raced to whatever platform they could use—from social media to the water cooler—to voice their opinions.
I saw the most commotion on Facebook, where many of my journalist friends were screaming with all sorts of acronyms (OMG! WTF?!), and symbols (J/L) and lopsided rants on the audacity of the FTC. I surmised that some weren’t worried about journalistic integrity at all, but more concerned that the “fringe benefits” to which they had grown accustomed would wither under the new Guides.
The Guides represent a change in the game for all involved in the dissemination of communication messages. For editors and bloggers, this means full transparency and disclosing any material connections—including cash or in-kind payment (AKA the freebies). Companies and PR agencies can land in trouble for attempting to sway journalists by providing “payment” if the journalist fails to disclose the exchange.
Other areas where the Guides may affect communications practices include:
The Fine Print: The revised Guides will reduce the ambiguity often found in consumer testimonial advertisements. Advertisers can no longer rely on ‘fine print’ phrases such as “Results Not Typical” or “Results May Vary,” and now must disclose the results that consumers can generally expect from the advertised product or service. This is good, because I’d like to know how much weight I can really “expect” to lose on a Jenny Craig® diet.
Social Media Kiss-and-Tell: As making disparaging comments on Facebook about your employer is a bad move, such is blatant promotion without disclosure. The FTC is stipulating that employees who post glowing reviews and commentary about their employers’ products and services should disclose such relationships. This new guideline makes the need for employee policies and procedures on social media participation all the more crucial.
Celebrity Pushers: Celebrities, along with advertisers, will be held responsible (gasp!) for false or unsubstantiated claims made in endorsements, and for failing to reveal the relationship between the parties when pushing products in “non-traditional” advertising such as talk shows or social media. That means “What Not to Wear” co-host Stacy London must say she’s a compensated endorser of Riders by Lee® when tweeting how good they make her butt look—and in less than 140 characters! (Full disclosure: Riders by Lee® is a client of FWV!)
Like them or hate them, the guidelines will inevitably set a new tone for how we go about our daily business as communicators, on both the editorial and PR sides. Beyond just ethics, we need to revise our best practices according to these new Guides to ensure we all stay out of legal hot water.
Posted Nov 3, 2009 by Khaner Walker - Senior Account Executive |
Since North Carolina voted for Obama and more importantly voted Sen. Dole out of office in 2008, Sen. Burr became an immediate target for the national and state Democratic Parties.
While his seat continues to be ranked as one likely for turnover in 2010 and continued polling shows Burr’s approval ratings in the mid 30’s (along with Sen. Hagan and Gov. Perdue… virtually every statewide elected official), Democrats have been unable to field a candidate to their liking.
Not a peep has been heard from favorite son Richard Moore, former state treasurer and 2008 candidate for governor. The wooing has been intense for former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker and Rep. Bob Etheridge – however neither heavyweight has yet to tip their hand.
The strongest candidate to declare their candidacy has been Secretary of State Elaine Marshall. While widely respected in her party and indeed N.C., Marshall placed a distant third in her last bid for the U.S. Senate, losing to Erskine Bowles and Dan Blue. She raised eyebrows when choosing to not even hold a press conference announcing her bid. Also, I am truly not sure the majority of N.C. voters are ready for three females in the state’s top political offices.
As both parties head into the holidays, expect the behind-the-scenes courtship of a ‘top-tier’ candidate to increase rapidly. Democrats need to find someone with the political savvy, monetary warchest and high statewide name ID to pose a serious threat to Burr.
With $3.4 million in campaign funds he has on-hand (compared to Marshall’s $180,000), no serious skeletons in the closet and according to Erskine Bowles* an incredible work ethic for our state, it’s no wonder why the serious candidates are taking a long, hard look as to what it will take to beat Richard Burr.
*Burr’s former opponent for his seat was quoted last week saying, “Nobody works harder or smarter for North Carolina than Richard Burr does.”
