I look at a Madison Avenue adman, Ellis Verdi, who’s getting into politics, taking on what he sees as “the same five hacks making the same five ads over and over.” David Axelrod and David Garth fire back, while Ogilvy chief and Politicker icon Shelly Lazarus takes Verdi’s side.
Just back from Mike Bloomberg’s semi-official volunteer hoe-down at B.B. King’s, a perfectly-staged political event. What it lacked in passion, it more than made up in 6:00-news-ready ethnic balance, brevity, and crowd density.
And you know it’s political season when Verna Eggleston, the head of the city’s welfare agency, returns from wherever she’s spent Read More
When Mayor Michael Bloomberg took office six months ago, the political establishment predicted that this private-sector entrepreneur would quickly find himself lost in a bureaucratic netherworld of union leaders, lobbyists, career government workers, elected officials and screaming Al Sharptons. But Mr. Bloomberg’s opening lap has been marked by a surprising string of successes, and he Read More
As you may have read in the daily press, my friend Bill O’Shaughnessy (hey, don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking) has come up with an idea that may change forever, or until next year, the way political campaigns are covered.
Which is to say, he’s ignoring them. Or, more precisely, he chose Read More
