missed the mark

MoveOn.org’s Terrible ‘Boycott Target’ Ad

So this is the television ad MoveOn.org is running on national cable and Minnesota television networks over the next week to bring attention to Target’s political donations, and boy is it stupid.

MoveOn.org has already been criticized by The Gays for making the debate over Target’s $150,000 donation to the Tom Emmer-backing Minnesota Forward PAC about how they’re trying to influence elections. Which is true! But they’re also trying to elect an anti-gay candidate, something the company and its executives have a history of doing. Not that MoveOn.org doesn’t have a point: “Target’s refusal to acknowledge its customers’ outrage at their attempt to buy elections is scandalous,” executive director Justin Ruben says in a statement. “Americans have spoken: we don’t want corporations meddling in our democracy. Corporate money in elections is nothing more than political bribery and we’re not going to stop targeting Target until they stop trying to buy our elections.”

Fine, but this ad says none of that. It’s just an attempt to get people to be tacitly aware that Target is doing something people are waving a finger at. Instead, the spot looks like a third grader’s version of an actual Target commercial, which of course is intentional, but in 30 seconds provides zero information about what’s just so terrible about the company waging a political war with its billions.

If the Human Rights Campaign can’t get Target out of politics, can MoveOn.org?

Whatever. Target’s share are up.

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