Princetonians to Enter Ad Contest Protesting the Bush Administration

Candace Braun

Approximately 50 Princeton residents gathered on Sunday, November 30, to create a 30-second anti-Bush video to enter in a political ad contest.

Led by Princeton residents Dan Preston of Telequest, a local video production company, and Jenny Crumiller, who has been active in various community political campaigns, the ad will be composed of a series of short blurbs by residents criticizing President Bush's policies and the way his administration has handled the government since he has been in office.

The winning ad in the "Bush In 30 Seconds" contest will be broadcast on television during the week of the president's 2004 State of The Union Address. All other ads will be available for viewing on the MoveOn.org website.

Some participants in the ad taping included Mayor-Elect Joseph O'Neill, former School Board member Gerald Grove, Princeton Democratic Committee Chairman Andrew Koontz, and Assemblyman Reed Gusciora of the 15th District.

"We were inclined to do this anyway, and [the contest] got us going," said Mr. Preston. The contest is sponsored by MoveOn.org, part of the MoveOn.org Voter Fund, which has 527 fund affiliates. The organization's goal is to create and run powerful political ads to challenge President Bush and his policies.

MoveOn.org was created by Joan Blades and Wes Boyd of Silicon Valley in 1998 as an outlet for democrats. It is also headed by International Campaign Director Eli Pariser, who founded "9-11 Peace.org," which called for a peaceful response to break the cycle of violence after 9/11.

Princeton's political ad falls on the heels of an Anti-War video produced earlier this year by the Anti-War Video Fund (AWVF), a Princeton-based peace media project. The anti-war ad, which featured 20 Princeton residents' views on the war in Iraq, was also put together by Mr. Preston and Ms. Crumiller. However, while many of the residents overlap from the last video, it is not being put together by any particular organization, said Ms. Crumiller.

Last January, after AWVF paid Comcast cable $5,000 to air its ad, the company refused to air the video at the last minute. The ad was supposed to air twice between 7 p.m. and midnight during the week of last year's State of the Union Address. But Comcast had said it considered two statements on the video to be "unsubstantiated allegations." While the ad did not air on Comcast, it was shown locally and in parts of New York and Washington D.C., said Ms. Crumiller.

If the new Princeton ad wins the contest, it will appear on television for free. However, Mr. Preston and Ms. Crumiller do not, as of yet, have an exact plan as to how they will get their message out if they lose the contest.

A viewing of the video in town, or the raising of funds once again so that the ad can be aired on television were both options suggested by Ms. Crumiller and Mr. Preston. The first video the group created was very well received, said Mr. Preston. "This one will be in the same style, giving the voice of the people," he said.

Taping of the video was completed Monday night, and it will be submitted to the contest by Friday, December 5. Voting will take place by December 30 on the website.

Judges for the contest will include celebrities like Jack Black, actor and comedian, James Carville, political commentator, Katrina Vanden Heuvel, editor of The Nation, and Moby, a musician.