Group makes point in odd e-mail ploy

FLINT JOURNAL COLUMN

GENESEE COUNTY

THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION

Sunday, September 23, 2007
By Brenda Brissette Mata

Journal Columnist

Hunger, drought, injustice: When the focus of the media falls upon a hot topic of suffering, Americans tend to get riled. We jump up and down like kids with sugar rushes on the playground and then become distracted by the pretty lights of Hollywood.

A kind of sociopolitical ADD, in this case AAD (American Attention Deficit).

Earlier this week, I received the requisite few hundred e-mails that roll in everyday: From how to get an interview with a 9/11 hero to a press release on how audiobooks ease the drag of long commutes.

I did the usual perusal: print some, delete some, delete the ridiculous stuff and keep the boring, stupid, don't-care for later review.

That's when I saw the subject line: O.J. Simpson and Lindsay Lohan Weigh in on Today's Amnesty Vote!

I was intrigued, opened the e-mail and began to read about the group's opposition to the amnesty of 4 million illegal aliens.

"As the U.S. Senate prepares to vote ... the mainstream media (Fox, CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, NBC) are focused on more important matters dealing with O.J. Simpson, Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears."

The e-mail went on with a parody of made-up quotes by Lohan and Simpson regarding the amnesty vote.

ALIPAC (Americans for Legal Immigration Political Action Committee) President William Gheen was happy to take my call about 20 minutes later.

The organization's mission is to enforce existing immigration laws.

"During the last amnesty battle, every time I would go on CNN, Fox and MSNBC, the immigration battle became a top story behind Anna Nicole Smith," Gheen said.

"I'm sitting here with my little earpiece in every other day listening to whatever we had to talk about taking second place to who's Anna Nicole Smith's baby's daddy."

Gheen said the political action committee takes its work very seriously, and it was a tough decision whether or not to use the parody e-mail, but in the end it's about getting the message out.

The group monitors news across the nation, regularly hoping to hear their message.

"Most people do not know that the Senate may be voting on amnesty for 4 million aliens. We cannot have an active political process when people don't even know what's happening," he said.

Reaction to the e-mail was large. Gheen said the group's press list is about 30,000, and he normally receives five or six calls after an e-mail goes out asking to be taken off the conservative list.

This time he received more than 100.

"We did sort of rub it in," he said with a chuckle. "The point we're trying to make is that O.J. Simpson and drugged out blondes or brunettes are not news. This press release was a bit of a hail Mary pass to get attention."

A Google search of amendment 2237, offered by Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) revealed 129,000 mentions.

A Google search of Lindsay Lohan reveals more than 8 million mentions of the troubled actress on various Web sites. O.J. gets nearly 16 million and Britney a whopping 50,700,000.

"I refuse to believe my fellow countrymen and women are more interested in dead strippers, drugged-out and drunked-out blondes and failed sports stars," Gheen said.

"Reporting the news means telling people what's going on relative to their lives, especially legislation and campaigns and things that Americans are supposed to have a decision-making status in."

Gheen is passionate about his politics. I didn't know about the amnesty vote.

I did know that O.J. Simpson was arrested again.

I know that I've heard more about Lindsay Lohan's run-ins with the law than I have about amendment 2237.

Regardless of politics, Gheen makes a good point.

http://www.mlive.com