A truly remarkable political milestone occurred last week.  Barack Obama’s campaign launched a Web site devoted entirely to discrediting so-called smears at www.fightthesmears.com.

When I first learned of the initiative, I assumed it had to be an unaffiliated site run by Obama supporters, but I was amazed to learn it was part of his official campaign.

In past political campaigns, rumor and innuendo has consistently been part of the game.   Third parties with vague affiliations to specific candidates leak unsubstantiated information that calls an opponent’s character into question.   In this campaign, however, the official Obama for President campaign’s plan is to attempt to challenge existing rumors head-on, which raises many additional questions:

* At what point does the campaign decide to list a “smear” on its site? Are these smears prior negative evening stories, or Page Six items, or merely circulating rumors that many have yet to learn about?

* How does the campaign respond differently online vs. its daily press briefings? By calling attention to and denying a “rumor” so blatantly, there are inherent risks.

* Does the campaign risk opponents abusing the “Push Back Now” feature to further disseminate rumors/truths from the Obama email system?

Clearly, this is a very aggressive strategy for a presidential candidate.  Forward thinking, yes, but perhaps not the best move for the official campaign.  I think it is wiser to use a third party support group than have the official campaign as the front.

Third parties have the freedom to take controversial actions that a candidate would never dream of undertaking.  A third party would keep the situation at an arm’s length, leaving Obama free to steer the campaign away from smear and toward the issues.

One Obama quote on the Wall Street Journal’s Washington Wire that I found telling and quite interesting from a campaign that claims to be positive: Candidate Obama set the stage for the coming “fight” by saying, “If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun.”

For an interesting marketing perspective on the initiative, Washington Post blogger Chris Cillizza’s post is worth reading.  His most compelling argument in favor of the site is how the speed of information has exponentially increased in the last four years, making rumors spread far faster and deeper than in past campaigns.  That particular issue is one we’ve seen affect a wide range of industries, and it’s not surprising that politics is no exception.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

I am a huge fan of quotes.  In every office I have ever had, a framed poster of Ze’ev Jabotinsky’s (a great Zionist leader and personal hero for me) Samson book hangs with the immortal quote: “Tell them three things in my name, and not two: Collect iron , choose a king , and learn to laugh.” There are many life and business lessons one can gleam from this quote.

A friend, colleague and client, Dr. Keith Ablow, emailed me the following quote this morning after we had a discussion in my office about Jabotinsky’s quotes:

“The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dirt and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes short again and again, who knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.” – Theodore Roosevelt

Take chances and live life.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

I am an immense fan of Mark Cuban for many, many reasons. Having interacted with him on a few occasions (admittedly on the basketball court), I find him to be brutally honest and the quintessential entrepreneur – smart, focused, fun, accessible and real.  For that reason, I often read his blog.  Recently, I found his brother’s blog post about Evander Holyfield’s bankruptcy to be especially interesting.

Over the years, we’ve worked with many high profile athletes and entrepreneurs, from Sean Combs to Pamela Anderson to Roy Jones.  In the process, I’ve learned the truth behind many misconceptions of celebrity wealth, so I don’t find Holyfield, Tyson or other bankruptcy examples surprising. I’ve met many celebrities who aren’t wealthy in the least, for many reasons:

* Stars usually have very short career spans, without proper financial planning for when they are no longer relevant and large checks no longer appear.

* Becoming a celebrity creates basic lifestyle changes.  A sex symbol from a single movie may suddenly need constant security (which they pay for themselves), or a black car to chauffer them, since public transportation poses a threat or a nuisance.  As a star of a humongous HBO movie recently told me – “many changes.”

* Celebs often lack the desire to really work. They pay a ton of lip service, but often refuse to show up on time, take advantage of interviews, and focus on important decisions that need to be made about their businesses, careers, etc.

* Everyone wants to make a dime off them.  I can’t tell you how many cold calls my entertainment staff and I receive from pariahs who seek or want something from these folks.  The dozens of money managers who cold call me wanting to manage celebrity finances, or sell them something, is unreal.  I have on occasion asked them, “Why not chase my countless entrepreneurial CEO’s who have less people around them, are easier to sell and more likely to hire you?”

Articles like this are one of the reasons why 5WPR has built a tremendously successful business of athlete-entrepreneurs who are smart, focused and realize that there is a life after professional sports.

There is a tremendous need for better managers and better advisors who will be straight with these folks.  Additionally, these stars need to realize that on-air, on-court antics are one thing, but the same behavior won’t fly when it comes to doing business with corporate America.  Many stars who are infamously difficult are in fact a charm when it comes to marketing or sponsorship deals.  At the same time, those regarded as charming are, in fact, sometimes dishonest. This is another reason why stars need calculating managers to help them make decisions and need brands off the court or off the screen.

We have worked very hard to build a niche in the arena of being “cool enough to work with the stars/athletes, but buttoned up enough to work alongside decision makers in corporate America.”  It’s a fine balancing act.

Ronn Torossian
5WPR

I just returned to my office from my first day at the National Licensing Show, a 5W client.  As their Agency of Record, my firm has been all hands on deck ensuring the show is a complete success.  It was another very proud moment for me as a business owner and an entrepreneur.  One of my staffers, employed at 5W for nearly four years, said to me at the show, “Wow! How did we grow to get an account like this?”  It was a chance to stop and reflect.  This is a phenomenal show and a great client that is very exciting to work on.  What a moment it was for me and my staff.  Together, we have spent months preparing for the influx of press covering the Expo.

The show kicked off with a Nickelodeon press conference featuring M Night Shyamalan, who spoke on his next projects and how he selects which ventures to undertake.  His anecdotes included some humorous dinner discussions with his children.  Shymalan was followed by senior Viacom executives, who were treated as quasi-rock stars by their licensees.  It was fascinating to listen to the discussions on the evolution of licensee products and the like.

Walking the floor of the show, you see everything from Dora the Explorer to Elvis Presley to Manchester United programs to household cleaning products.  The impact of licensed products on every aspect of our life and behavior is simply unbelievable.  Brands impact our ability to trust, our ability to think, and our ability to behave.  They have simply penetrated all aspects of culture.  It is fascinating to observe brands that never really made it, which I vaguely remember, alongside items like Dora the Explorer and the Ghostbusters, which I so vividly remember from childhood.  The Ghostbusters Mobile at the entrance was incredibly cool.

A few other comments by Ronn Torossian:

After seeing Batman at the Warner Brothers booth, I had a discussion about one of my most vivid childhood memories.  I grew up a huge fan of Batman and Robin.  I really loved the POW!, KABOOM! and other noise bubbles that came from the characters’ mouths when they punched or were punched.  One afternoon in 1981, I was home watching Batman and the show was interrupted by the shooting of Ronald Reagan.  I complained endlessly to my mother, asking why Batman was interrupted and when it would come back on the air.  While my mother valiantly tried to explain to me the historical importance of the shooting, all I wanted was Batman.

The Jacob Javits Center is a small country of its own.  I admittedly don’t go more than once or twice a year, but the immense size of the center makes you feel like you are in Las Vegas.  From the concession stands to the sheer size and organization, it’s a place I plan to visit much more in the year to come in order to visit executives and farm for new business.

Ronn Torossian
5WPR

In today’s internet environment, saturated with self-made content, the rules of journalism are constantly re-establishing themselves.  This week, Mayhill Fowler has certainly reminded us of that. The 61-year-old “citizen journalist” and Huffington Post blogger proves that you don’t need a press pass to break a story, catching both Obama and Bill Clinton off-guard and on-tape.  Her rise is certainly another milestone in the debate on the relationship of bloggers and journalists.

Many very interesting comments and discussions can be raised on the topic of the changing world of journalism.  However, the question that I always come back to is, “can all bloggers truly be considered journalists?” With many bloggers, there’s no way to determine objectivity or allegiance.  For example, would anyone expect me to write something positive about a product which competes with one of my clients’ products?  Of course not.

I found the following LA Times article to be very interesting, but for me the key line was: “Now, every person in a crowd could be a Mayhill Fowler.” At the very least, it’s certainly interesting food for thought.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR