Friday, January 20, 2012
Guv'ment New Coke-bankrolled video touts mayor in grand fashion
Posted by Scott Henry @ScottTheHenry on Fri, Jan 20, 2012 at 5:42 PM
The tone of the script and the sky-high production values would be in keeping with a tourism video produced by a convention and visitors bureau, but instead of touting a city, per se, the video touts the mayor specifically. I guess these Chamber events have always featured a video checking off the current mayor's accomplishments. It's not that I take issue with any of the facts cited in the piece, but I suspect that one reason this video seems weirdly over-the-top to me is that I'm reacting to its slickness.
"The mayor was ecstatic with the final product," Reed spokesman Reese McCranie tells me. Yeah, I can understand why. The whole thing is basically a cinematic reach-around. I wouldn't mind one of those myself.
Speaking of product, what lengths did the Coke people go to make sure there was a familiar red-and-white can visible on the mayor's desk? "That wasn't a product placement," McCranie says. "The mayor drinks Coke all day."
No wonder the company loves him.
Now, I also hinted yesterday that Monica Pearson's voice-over on the video could be construed as a journalistic conflict of interest. While it's common for TV news personalities to lend their talents to non-profit causes such as charity auctions and fund-raising videos — even at the request of corporate sponsors — it's considered a no-no for them to take part in any public act designed to benefit a politician. Typically, that goes for anchors, too. Thoughts?
UPDATE, 6:13 p.m. by Thomas: Pearson responded to my tweet about Scott's post:
@thomaswheatley The station had to approve me doing it, so they don't see it as a conflict.
— Monica Pearson (@MonicaWSB) January 20, 2012
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