The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has posted a performance by comedian Horseman at one of its rallies on the video-sharing website YouTube. Whilst, YouTube user ‘Drew Latitude’ has posted a clip of the People’s National Party’s (PNP) ‘Straight from the Horse’s Mouth’ television advertisement; albeit filmed from a television screen. Not to be outdone the PNP have said they will soon be posting official Party videos on YouTube.

Click here to watch Part 2

With the Jamaica Labour Party’s (JLP) ‘Not Changing the course’ advertisement gaining much attention, the People’s National Party (PNP) is airing an ‘answer’ advertisement.

Whereas the Opposition advertisement had spliced the words of Prime Minister President Portia Simpson Miller and Government ministers, the PNP song ‘Dem a hypocrite!’ uses full quotes from Opposition Leader Bruce Golding and JLP General Secretary Karl Samuda attacking their own party.

Photo by Ross Sheil: People’s National Party (PNP) website

Mr. Golding and Mr. Samuda had made their comments after leaving the JLP for the National Democratic Movement (NDM) and PNP respectively. Both men have since rejoined the party.

A previous People’s National Party Youth Organisation (PNPYO) advertisement criticised the splicing of Mrs. Simpson Miller’s remarks by the JLP’s young professional arm Generation 2000 (G2K), which produced ‘Not Changing the course’.

Is the latest PNP effort more or less effective than the JLP advertisement? Comment below

“OhmyGod!”

A political nuisance was shared on video-sharing website YouTube by some American tourists recently.

Posted on July 5 is a clip filmed by the tourists, or persons seeming to be tourists, of a Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) motorcade taking over a stretch of road.

It does not state when the incident occurred.

The Labourites’ vehicles peacefully pass the bemused visitors who seemed to share the adverse reaction of many Jamaicans to motorcades - there have been several violent incidents associated with motorcades recently.

“Showa! Showa!” yelled some Labourites; others ringing bells or hanging out of windows as they passed a stationary police vehicle.

“This is crazy,” was the reaction of one American. “This is really overwhelming.”

You can send in your video clips or photographs for publication. E-mail: ross.sheil@gleanerjm.com

A group of friends are drinking in a bar. One of them goes to buy a round. He pauses; turns around and asks his friends what they will be having.

Well, he almost does.

“We not changing no course!” interrupt his friends in unison.

Those words uttered by Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller, and then spliced in a Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) election campaign advertisement, have now entered the national consciousness. Replayed in commercial breaks throughout the day, they echo across Jamaica.

YouTube video clip of the advertisement. Click here to watch part 2

Appropriated by the JLP, taken to by the public and now with the People’s National Party (PNP) attempting to re-appropriate their leader’s words, the question remains: has it been successful?

Two people who were unlikely to agree were JLP spokesman Delano Severight who replies with a sure “Yes!” and PNP spokesman Julian Robinson, who not unexpectedly, says “No!”

“It’s absolutely working for the JLP,” maintains Mr. Seiveright. “The effect on the population is frankly outstanding and beyond our expectations and the most important aspect of the issue is that we’re really connecting to the grassroots and the PNP have realised this. They have tried to spin it but it has backfired on them.”

By that he means the PNP’s reuse of the phrase on campaign platforms, including Mrs. Simpson Miller herself, when announcing the August 27 election date; much to the glee of the comrades crammed into Half-Way Tree that Sunday a fortnight ago, who shouted the words just as lustily as Labourites might.

“I do think the ‘Not changing course’ campaign has backfired on the G2K, ” contends Mr. Robinson of Generation 2000, the young professional arm of the JLP, which produced the advertisement. “The slogan has become a rallying point for PNP supporters as it endorses the course of development and economic growth.”

But what do the voters think? The word on the street in Downtown Kingston is mixed.

Says Chin*, a 20-year-old man who works downtown: “The ‘not changing course’ slogan is working in favour of Portia, the PNP says that they are in forward mode, towards development and growth. So in that light, you can see where it has backfired on the G2K, to Portia’s benefit.”

Ricky*, 25, thinks differently: “Our course ‘affi change! Wah di boss say? All a dem weh a go ina wrong direction and still nah change course … Every time Portia hear dat she mad.”

But then others, like Daddy G*, 47, would like to change the course of Jamaican politics entirely: “Right now me sick a hearin’ dem. Doe even waa’ hear dem ‘Nah change course’. After years of witnessing politics, all now me nuh see no better, matter of fact … wouldn’t mind no voters turn out this year … Mek dem get ah lick.”

* Names changed upon request

With both main political parties touting their ‘e-credentials’ it remains to be seen how effective Internet campaigning has become and who is more popular online. The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) recently announced that its website has received 1.2 million ‘hits’ since it launched November last year while the People’s National Party (PNP) claims 119,693 ‘visitors’ since July 2001.

However these statistics can be misleading. Firstly the numbers have to be verified and secondly the statistics are made from different measurements; browsing a web page can generate several hits whereas visitors to a website are single – in other words, visitors are worth more than hits.

Photo by Ross Sheil: Are politicians getting to grips with the Internet?

Both parties are aware of the potential offered by the Internet to reach younger voters who are increasingly living their lives on social networking websites such as Hi5, MySpace and Facebook. Earlier this year The Gleaner reported on an Internet prankster who had posted Hi5 profiles impersonating Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and her predecessors P.J. Patterson and Edward Seaga.

While the elderly Mr. Seaga was unaware of Hi5 – he took the joke in his stride – the JLP whom he once led, are making full use of the technology.

The JLP has a channel on YouTube, the video-sharing website, with the two parts of its infamous ‘Not Changing the Course’ advertisement – mocking Mrs. Simpson Miller and her government – viewed almost 6,000 times in total.

The PNP have not yet officially stepped into the YouTube arena. The most popular PNP-related video on the site, featuring deejay Cutty Ranks performing a tribute to Michael Manley*, has 21,909 views. However as at the rallies themselves this may just reflect a greater public interest in hearing what a deejay has to say, rather than the politicians sharing the stage.

If the parties listen to young voters like 20-year-old Corve DaCosta then by the next election at least - when broadband access will have become more widespread - they will be increasingly targeting the Internet audience. Gleaner Online spoke to Mr. DaCosta via instant messenger having located him on the G2K Hi5 group.

“If politicians use the channel appropriately and persuasively I believe it will really sensitise me and other young people who use the Internet,” he said.

Additional reporting by Jaevion Nelson

*According to the description of the video on YouTube, Cutty Ranks was performing at a PNP rally in 1986. However PNP General Secretary Donald Buchanan said that while the deejay’s music was played at rallies he could not recall him performing in person. Please contact us if you have further information about the video.