Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsHas this been posted? Michael Caputo's project for HHS - an ad campaign against despair of COVID
.....using taxpayer money to cheerlead a rah rah P.R. blitz prior to the election.
Rolling out very soon.
Here's the story from Politico today:
[link:https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/25/trump-hhs-ads-coronavirus-421957|
The health department is moving quickly on a highly unusual advertising campaign to "defeat despair" about the coronavirus, a $300 million-plus effort that was shaped by a political appointee close to President Donald Trump and executed in part by close allies of the official, using taxpayer funds.
The ad blitz, described in some budget documents as the "Covid-19 immediate surge public advertising and awareness campaign," is expected to lean heavily on video interviews between administration officials and celebrities, who will discuss aspects of the coronavirus outbreak and address the Trump administration's response to the crisis, according to six individuals with knowledge of the campaign who described its workings to POLITICO.
Advertisement
Senior administration officials have already recorded interviews with celebrities like actor Dennis Quaid and singer CeCe Winans, and the Health and Human Services Department also has pursued television host Dr. Mehmet Oz and musician Garth Brooks for roles in the campaign.
The public awareness campaign, which HHS is seeking to start airing before Election Day on Nov. 3, was largely conceived and organized by Michael Caputo, the health department's top spokesperson who took medical leave last week and announced on Thursday that he had been diagnosed with cancer. Caputo, who has no medical or scientific background, claimed in a Facebook video on Sept. 13 that the campaign was "demanded of me by the president of the United States. Personally."
"The Democrats and, by the way, their conjugal media and the leftist scientists that are working for the government are dead set against it," Caputo told his Facebook followers in the Sept. 13 video. "They cannot afford for us to have any good news before November because they're already losing. They're going to come after me because I'm going to be putting $250 million worth of ads on the air."
The campaign is indeed under investigation by Democrats, who have charged that the massive ad blitz is an attempt to boost Trump's standing on Covid-19 before the election and have unsuccessfully called on HHS to halt the contract. POLITICO first reported the planned campaign.
more at link above
InfoView thread info, including edit history
TrashPut this thread in your Trash Can (My DU » Trash Can)
BookmarkAdd this thread to your Bookmarks (My DU » Bookmarks)
3 replies, 459 views
ShareGet links to this post and/or share on social media
AlertAlert this post for a rule violation
PowersThere are no powers you can use on this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
ReplyReply to this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
Rec (0)
ReplyReply to this post
3 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Has this been posted? Michael Caputo's project for HHS - an ad campaign against despair of COVID (Original Post)
Grasswire2
Sep 2020
OP
BigmanPigman
(51,593 posts)1. Here is one from earlier...
https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=2589797
Caputo...
Dennis Quaid...
Caputo...
Dennis Quaid...
eShirl
(18,492 posts)2. quarter of a billion dollars
flushhh!
SunSeeker
(51,557 posts)3. Meanwhile, 1,000 Americans are dying daily and nurses are re-using N95 masks.