I think Gore is absolutely operating the best strategy, period.
Great strategy if he doesn't run for President: Huge publicity, tremendous PR, global participation in the concerts, and for the cause.
Great strategy if he is running too. Wait, let the early declarers show if they have the right stuff. After all Gore's been through three campaigns for the White House already, two for VP and one for President. Can't blame him for waiting. But if there are no major missteps, and the others suffer campaign fatigue, voter fatigue, foot in mouth syndrome, the party will be enthusiastic should he decide to run later on.
The amount of crap being flung at him by the GOP sleazoids already shows they are very worried about him running.
Hollywood Today
Oscar Winner Gore: Politics Can Wait, Earth Can’t
HOLLYWOOD, CA (Hollywood Today) 02/24/07 — Al Gore took the stage at the Oscars with the triumphant swagger of a true celebrity to a standing ovation before a billion TV viewers to accept the best documentary award for “An Inconvenient Truth.” “It’s not a political issue it’s a moral issue,” said the former Vice President of the United States.
“We were moved to act by this man,” said director Davis Guggenheim. Even film star Leonardo DiCaprio gushed over Gore when he earlier announced the Oscars had “gone green” for the first time in history. When asked repeatedly by DiCaprio if Gore had any major announcements to make, Gore began in perfect deadpan, “My fellow Americans,” before being cut off by the music receiving one of the biggest laughs of the night.Something else funny has happened since Al Gore’s political career dead ended with his much debated loss in the 2000 presidential race: he has actually changed something. No, he hasn’t solved the world’s climate crisis, but he certainly let us know we were having one.
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If this doesn’t seem that impressive, think about the fact that Al Gore had been championing environmental causes, particularly global warming, for much of his thirty-year political career without making much of a dent in mainstream social consciousness. In one year, however, with the help of some Hollywood wizardry, he took an academic slide-show presentation and turned it into an international blockbuster. Dare we say social phenomenon.
This Oscar could be just the beginning of a year full of such honors for Mr. Gore. He was also recently named one of many nominees for the Nobel Peace Prize, for his work on the environment. However, he has a good chance, according to some. “A prerequisite for winning the Nobel Peace Prize is making a difference, and Al Gore has made a difference,” said Boerge Brende, a Norwegian member of Parliament who nominated Gore.
Gore has created a whole new career for himself as a media mogul with the help of his celebrity friends. He is leading a revolution in socially responsible media, and as his credibility grows in Hollywood, more and more celebrities are jumping on the bandwagon.
Gore does not seem to be shying away from the camera. His newest endeavor is “Live Earth”, a 24-hour concert on 7/7/07 that will take place across all seven continents, including Antarctica (for the penguins I guess), which will bring over 100 of the world’s biggest musical acts together to raise awareness of global warming. Just in case you missed the movie.
Ever since he has declared himself a “recovering politician” a vast portion of the American public seems to hang on his every word and looks ready to follow him into a twenty-first century environmental battlefield in Toyota Priuses. Would we really be paying this much attention to Al Gore if he weren’t surrounding himself with chiseled Hollywood faces?
Americans these days seem more willing to believe social commentary when it comes from George Clooney or Live Earth spokesperson Cameron Diaz than from the President of the United States.
What does it mean when Al Gore becomes more effective as a celebrity than a statesman? For one, it seems to justify the larger role Hollywood has begun to take in politics. If “Inconvenient Truth” can help fix global warming then who’s going to scoff at Brad and Angelina when they make quixotic statements about ending world hunger. After all, at least people will listen to them.
A recent CBS Poll said 47% of respondents thought celebrities should get involved with politics. An even higher percentage of young people, age 18 to 30, 61% want to see their favorite stars getting involved in issues.
Artists such as Black Eyed Peas, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Snoop Dogg, Mana, Duran Duran, Bloc Party and the Foo Fighters have already signed on to the Live Earth concert, and other artists not on tour are postponing their sailing trips to make sure they don’t miss the boat on this one.
At the press conference, Gore said “We are launching SOS and Live Earth to begin a process of communication that will mobilize people all over the world to take action. The climate crisis will only be stopped by an unprecedented and sustained global movement. We hope to jump-start that movement right here, right now, and take it to a new level on July 7, 2007.”
Will he save the world? Let’s not go that far, but there is no denying that in Hollywood he has a hot hand. Even one of Al Gore’s earlier media projects, Current TV, of which he is chairman, has been steadily gaining steam since its inception only a few years ago, and will now begin broadcasting in the UK in March.
Current TV is an independent TV station broadcast on cable in the US where viewers supply a bulk of the content. Their web site proclaims that the channel is the “first network in history whose programming is supplied in part by the very audience who watches it.” The programming is non-fiction and, of course, socially conscious. Basically it’s, YouTube that went to college.
While he has repeatedly proclaimed that he has no interest in entering the 2008 presidential race, momentum is growing to try to recruit Mr. Gore for the race. At least two independent websites, algore.org and draftgore.com, have popped up with the sole purpose of drafting Gore into the 2008 race.
Kalee Kreider, Mr. Gore’s spokeswoman and environmental adviser, said nothing has changed regarding his stance on running for office. “He says it best, that he has no intention of running for office in 2008.”
Mr. Gore often says that, “Political will is a renewable resource.” So what happens if Mr. Gore succeeds in energizing and politicizing an apathetic citizenry? Are the powers that be in Washington going to be ready to answer to citizens that want real action taken on social and political issues such as global warming? These questions are still up in the air but it does seem evident that if Mr. Gore were giving his global warming speeches in a banquet hall in Washington rather than Beverly Hills there probably wouldn’t be so many people listening.
On the red carpet before the Oscarcast, Gore stated “We have a long way to go, but all of us can do something in our own lives to make a difference.”
Next month, Gore is set to testify before Congress on global warming. Apparently Gore hasn’t completely given up on Washington. As important as Hollywood support and funding has become in presidential campaigning, it would be foolish to count out Hollywood’s political golden child. If the pressure for Gore to run wins out, and he find himself in the White House in 2009 he’ll have something no President, not even Ronald Reagan, could adorn the Oval Office with — an Oscar.
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