Criticizing Obama, Iraq Vet Helps McCain Online

A young Iraq veteran's unofficial video letter to Barack Obama criticizing the candidate for his Iraq policy now ranks fourth in the number of online videos watched in the past 30 days, as compiled by Viral Video Chart.  The message of 23-year-old Joe Cook's two minute address is simple: he repeatedly states that the invasion of Iraq was not a mistake, and to call it such dishonors the memories of those who've died.  Cook says:

"This might be the Republicans' first real runaway hit," said Micah Sifry, executive editor of Personal Democracy Forum, a nonpartisan group studying technology in politics...the Republican campaign is gaining traction with online video, most notably at the end of July when it launched a segment mocking Sen. Obama's celebrity. Then Gov. Sarah Palin joined the ticket. The number of subscribers to Sen. McCain's YouTube channel has increased by nearly 50% from a month ago, according to the Pew Research Center. 

The Democrats still remain well ahead in using the medium. The number of subscribers to Sen. Obama's YouTube channel dwarfs that of Sen. McCain, 16.2 million to 1.5 million. Whether the clips will matter in the election is another question. Many of these videos likely reinforce opinions, rather than change them. Still, in campaigns today, "images are very powerful things that can stay with voters more than words can," said Amy Mitchell, deputy director of the center's Project for Excellence in Journalism.

Cook, who was injured in Iraq (his prosthetic leg is visible in the video), met the film's producer during a welcome home parade thrown for the soldier when he returned home to Wauconda, Ill.  The producer, Michael Brown, described himself to the Wall Street Journal as a maker of Christian-themed videos.  He's made two subsequent pro-McCain videos although he has no official connection to the campaign.