Saturday, April 08, 2006

Will Al Gore Use Current TV For 2008 Launchpad? Network Expands to 28-Million Households With New Comcast Deal


Under a new deal with Comcast, Al Gore's Current TV network will expand its reach by an additional 8 million households by June 1, to a total of 28-million. Current was created as an outlet for viewer-created content, or VC2, which currently accounts for about a third of all programming. Targeted primarily to tech-savvy viewers 18 to 34 years old, it features short, fast-paced programs called pods produced by both professionals and amateurs. The deal increases Current's household reach substantially, to most of the cable company's subscribers. Current TV was previously only available to about 500,000 Comcast customers.

Some in Democratic circles are speculating that Gore, who founded the network in 2004 along with other investors, could very well be planning to use his access to 28 million households as a major launchpad for what could be a very different 2008 presidential campaign. Over the last few years, the grassroots/'netroots movements have allowed candidates like Howard Dean to raise tremendous funds using alternative media, attracting younger people into the election process and forever changing how the political game is played.

Many are hopeful that Gore will be running, despite his half-hearted attempts to squash such rumors. The field of Democrats is weak, with Hillary Clinton leading the pack. While she appears at this stage to have frontrunner status and could likely win the nomination, most rational Democrats believe she doesn't have much chance of winning the national election. Gore on the other hand not only has the gravitas to win the nomination, but to go all the way in the presidential contest as well.

As Jason Maoz wrote last week in the TheJewishPress.com, "It was a far-fetched scenario as recently as a year ago, but Al Gore is quietly making something of a political comeback. Moderate Democrats who despair that the early frontrunner for their party’s 2008 presidential nomination, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, is likely unelectable, can’t help remembering that Gore won half a million more votes than George W. Bush in 2000. Meanwhile, the party’s base voters, appreciably more to the left than the country at large and angry at what they perceive to be Clinton’s drift to the center, are looking for someone other than her to carry the anti-Bush, antiwar banner."

Several major pundits on both sides of the aisle, from Robert Novak and Pat Buchanan to Eleanor Clift and Donna Brazile, believe The Goracle can and should become the party's top candidate. And many political experts also believe Gore will eventually toss his hat into the ring.

If and when he does, do not underestimate the power he'll have using Current TV to gain traction for the campaign.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

The MSM must think Gore is running because I heard some dipwad trot out the "earth tones, reinvent himself" nonsense the other day.

Anonymous said...

Be assured...Gore, if he does decide/has decided to run, will do it in a way that is so unique and beyond the usual BS trail of tears and slogging that it will dazzle us. More than anything, I want to trust my President. What a concept, nu? At this point, there is literally no one, aside from Feingold that I trust, other than Gore. He is canny, he is primed, and if he chooses to run, he will swoop down with the avengence of a real statesman. Who could blame him for staying out of the utter latrine of Presidential Politcs? Yet, we hear those speeches, we see that gleam and hear that steel vein of contempt in his voice....Thus, I say RE-ELECT GORE 2008. Selah.

Anonymous said...

It would be interesting to see Gore take a technical approach to running his campaign start-up. He did "invent the Internet."

Ok... he didn't invent it, but he sure as hell helped make it a reality.

Freedem said...

Now that he was primary in putting Current TV togeather, the swiftboaters will run around claiming that Gore said he invented TV.

I wasn't all that fond of the old DLC Gore, but the y2k mugging has brought out Charector. Liberman has gotten so DLC he is thinking of becoming a Republican. But Gore has grown wings he never had before y2k.

Unlike Nixon there really is a new Gore, His State of the Union Speech could not have happened from the "old" Gore. When things go well, very few folk go "Wow! Why did that happen?", but after the y2k debacle Gore really went back to school.

If he will now just get back on that horse, and ride like he means it, he could be the new Washington.

Anonymous said...

I think once people listen to the NEW Gore they will come around. Sure he didn't fight in 2000 and we all should have learned from that but did Kerry? NO!

I've said it time and time again, the election in 2008 will be who and who didn't vote for this invasion. Those that did not vote for it, like Russ Feingold will be the winner. Gore was against it from the get go and remember, he was the first to really come out and speak about it even though he didn't have to vote because he was no longer in the Senate.

By 2008 the tie will be changed and the GOP know this. Speaking of fooling me once, twice or even three times are you awake out there red states????

Anonymous said...

This is great news.

There's an awsome article on Gore in The American Prospect this month.

Since the FCC killed all of the equal time rules, Gore could use Current TV to air spots for all Dem candidates, or the ones he endorses.

That would be justice!

JMoore said...

People don't really think much of Al Gore, do they? Do you all truly believe he is some sort of manipulative selfish phoney that started CURRENT to push a personal agenda? When are you all going to see that he is sincere about Democratizing TV and giving Americans an outlet to make thenm citizen journalists? What an insult to all the people at CURRENT who work so hard day after day to bring a new version of tv. CURRENT is not Gore TV, and that is the way Al Gore wants it. You only demean his endeavors with these constant intimations.

Do you realize that by making people think he only started this station to use it for himself that people will not participate in it and it will hurt his credibility? Do any of you pushing this even know anything about this station? Would you even care if you couldn't use it for your own political hype? You all do the same thing regarding his conviction and work on global warming, and frankly it is getting very tired and redundant. He even announced at Drew University last week where he was giving a global warming presentation that he was not to be asked any questions about a political future. How sad that people only seem interested in his endeavors when they can attach a presidential run to it. What an insult to him and to all the passion and work he has put into these important causes.

The Ostroy Report said...

JAN SAID: "Do you all truly believe he is some sort of manipulative selfish phoney that started CURRENT to push a personal agenda?.....Do you realize that by making people think he only started this station to use it for himself"

Jan, I thank you for reading my blog and for taking the time to write. In my own defense, I did not in any way, shape or form say way you think I said. I clearly stated that "Current was created as an outlet for viewer-created content," and nowhere in my piece do I claim that Gore create Current for any "personal agenda" as you so strongly suggest. If you go back and re-read the piece I think you'll see that I merely suggested/asked if he may ultimately use the network to launch his campaign.
Andy