This is waaay better than the MoveOn ad. It may be hokey, but it's pitched at the non-ideological center, and does a good job of breezing through the biographical stuff that Obama is going to need to emphasize as he begins communicating with people who didn't follow the primary. (Sometimes it's easy to forget that such people exist.)

Beyond the candidate himself (who is biracial) there's not an African-American anywhere to be seen in this ad.  Not even Mr. Obama's current immediate family passes muster for its not-so-subtle messaging.  Even the pictures of his "community organizing" in Chicago display lots of white "steel workers."  If you're expecting to see pictures of the South Side of Chicago, you'll be disappointed.

Let's see if anybody in the media takes offense... I highly doubt it.    

nturner,

That's because anyone who would take offense on those grounds, and think the "not-so-subtle message" you're talking about is actually there, would be pretty silly.

"Let's see if anybody in the media takes offense."

I realize that getting offended for no good reason is our national pastime, but it's hard to imagine how any reasonable person could get too worked up over this. Anyone -- in the media or otherwise -- who "takes offense" at this needs to relax.

More like this. Obama's ability to address the voter directly in this sort of ad or interview is a necessary counterpoint to his ability to make the big speech. And it contrasts well with McCain, who sounds like a patronizing jackass when addressing the viewer in any one-on-one communication. For some reason, and this is kind of a new thing since mid-2007, McCain has adopted a speaking style that sounds like he's talking down to the world all the time. It's like some sort of parody of Al Gore's 2000 reputation.

Unlike Mike Huckabee, who restricted himself to a paltry single cross in the background, he's got several of them!

Woody,

You think it's an accident that blacks don't appear in that ad?  You think its coincidental that the pro-American-apple-pie ad didn't include the black family?  You think it's an accident that the community organizing picture chosen just so happened to feature whites?  I would wager that the vast majority of pictures from that era in Obama's life feature blacks from the South Side.  The campaign had to look hard for this one... but whatever... Saint Obama can't do anything questionable, much less wrong.

Look, I'm not taking offense personally.  I just find the double standard ridiculous.  Hillary's 3AM ad used stock images of families putting their children to bed, but liberal nutjobs still found a way to attack her for not including images of black children.  People on this site said it, of course, was intentional.  I just find it curious that Mr. Obama could so clearly pander to one community and not be called on it in the very same way any other politician would be called on it.

Was it nturner who said black votes don't "really" count in terms of electability?  I seem to think it was.  

nturner,

It's a commercial to introduce people to Obama, the people who raised him, and how he was raised; it is *not* a blacksploitation film.

Also, you obviously did not go back to double-check before you lamented that there were no other black people in the commercial.

Therefore, I really don't see the point of your post except to complain that Obama is not billing himself as "The Black Candidate". Why does this bother you? Did you want to see images of the black entourage that surrounds him everywhere he goes? I bet it would have really bothered you to have gotten footage of him in the Senate...

It's a nice message--very clear and informative--but we can't leave it at that because race-baiting is just so much fun! Way to go Jason.

"You think it's an accident that blacks don't appear in that ad?"

Blacks other than Obama *do* appear in that ad.

"the pro-American-apple-pie ad didn't include the black family"

Sorry, Obama's Kenyan relatives, the ones who played no role in his upbringing, were unavailable for photographs when they were making the commercial. Or, since all them blacks look alike to you, should Obama have just grabbed a couple of 'em off the street?

"community organizing picture chosen just so happened to feature whites?"

Which one, the black and white with at least three black people in it?

"I just find the double standard ridiculous"

I think the double standard is yours. I don't hear anyone complaining about anyone else's double-standard for not featuring black people in their campaigns; its a commercial, targeted to a specific audience, designed to bring across a specific message. Its not like there is some sort of black entourage that follows Obama everywhere, such that he's never been seperated from the herd and all the images provided had to have been staged.

As for his siblings, since when have siblings ever mattered in a campaign and why should they matter now? Because BHO is black?

"Barack Obama not only has a white mother but white grandparents, too! And did you know that he loves America?!:"

Doesn't that pretty much summarize the contraposition to the lines of attack pursued thus far by those who don't want Obama elected? I'd say the commercials summarizes the counter-argument nicely.

Dammit, epicciuto, you beat me to it!

Seriously, Obama can't talk about his mother and grandparents because? Are they too white?  Race-baiting indeed.

What a digusting Marxist rant. Helping out of work families. His socialism makes me want to throw up.

I'm not talking about his siblings' absence... I'm talking about his wife's and children's absence from the ad.  

And boneill:  Where did I say blacks don't "really" count in terms of electoral politics?  Yeah... you won't find that statement.  However, you might want to check with the Obama Campaign, though.  If this ad is any indication, they certainly don't seem to care much about that demographic.  I guess they figure they've got tAfrican-American votes in the bag no matter what Obama does or says.  

Stooooooooop!*

Look, nturner, as you full well know, everyone on earth knows he has a black wife and kids. But, through absolutely no fault of his own, a bunch of skittish old white people are afraid of his black self because black = anti-american fist bumping hooligan, and ohmygod, his terrorist name. So he has to calm people down by bending over backwards to show that the chances are really really really low that he hates white people. And I hope it works. Meanwhile, I continue to hate everybody.

*Stop, not Stoop.

"Meanwhile, I continue to hate everybody"

ummm...I hate you back? :>

Everyone but GSpinks.