September 10, 2008

Voting for a "Rock Star?"

Filed under: Media,Politics — Tags: , , , , , , — Melanie @ 9:27 am

Just this morning the Minneapolis-St.Paul Tribune claimed that Palin is a rock star and that liberals are worried.  What’s so striking is the fact that just weeks ago McCain launched a campaign criticizing Obama of being nothing more than a celebrity.  His campaign claimed that the country needs a leader with substance, a leader that has fought and has the “scars to prove it.” Yet, his own running mate is touted as achieving rock star status and that it should give considerable pause to Obama.  Polls claim that Obama is losing support.  What’s interesting is that most of these polls have not taken large samples in order to make these sweeping claims and/or they do not reveal what part of the country was polled or how there were polled for these survey results.

While conservative media outlets and McCain’s campaign celebrates the very thing they criticized in Obama (sound familiar?), actual rock stars have distanced themselves from the McCain/Palin ticket and have asked them to cease playing their immediately.

The official Hart website states:

“Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart have informed the McCain/Palin Campaign that Universal Music Publishing and Sony BMG have sent a cease-and-desist notice to not use one of Heart’s classic songs ‘Barracuda,’ as the congratulatory theme for Sarah Palin. The Republican campaign did not ask for permission to use the song, nor would they have been granted that permission. We have asked the Republican campaign not to use our music.”

They added:

“Sarah Palin’s views and values in NO WAY represent us as American women. We ask that our song ‘Barracuda’ no longer be used to promote her image. The song ‘Barracuda’ was written in the late ’70s as a scathing rant against the soulless, corporate nature of the music business, particularly for women. (The ‘barracuda’ represented the business.) While Heart did not and would not authorize the use of their song at the RNC, there’s irony in Republican strategists’ choice to make use of it there.”

Palin’s image is selling even in the face of resistance and disbelief.  Media historians claim that John F. Kennedy’s victory was assisted by the face-value that television provided in American homes across the country.  Palin’s “rock star” appeal in the face of frightening takes on social issues takes this phenomenon to new heights.