Tea Parties Fail to Draw Anywhere Near Predicted Attendance

[stevenleser]

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Tea-Parties-Fail-to-Draw-A-by-Steven-Leser-090416-110.html
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
April 16, 2009

By Steven Leser

First, we were told that the Tax Day Tea Parties would draw "millions" of Tea Baggers upset about having to swallow government spending and taxes "at over 5000 locations". Then we were told that "up to a million" Tea Baggers would attend at "up to a thousand locations" to spit in the face of big government. That was then pared back to "half a million" Tea Baggers would be squatting at "over 2000 locations nationwide". Tea Bagging has climaxed and gone and we've seen perhaps 500 locations and attendance of less than two hundred fifty thousand people, perhaps even less than one hundred thousand people opening their mouths to voice their displeasure. (See http://www.pjtv.com/?cmd=tea-party and http://freedompress.ning.com/forum/topics/tea-party-updates and note that these are figures from those promoting the events so they may be padded).

For the event to have so low a turnout after two weeks of non-stop promotion by Fox News and the backing of all of these heavy hitting Republican think tanks is a statement in itself. Just think about what a few minutes of time on a major nationwide cable network like Fox News costs to buy. Fox News probably wasted $5000 to $10,000 of airtime for every attendee. In the current popular vernacular, this is what is known as an "Epic Fail" http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=epic+fail .

Fox kept talking about how the million-man march only had around half a million attendees some time ago. If CNN or Fox (had it been around then) allowed itself to be used as non-stop marketing for the million man march for two weeks like it did with the Tea Parties, you probably would have had two million men at the million man march.

This failed effort reminds me of previous failed efforts by corporations to manufacture viral videos or other, what would normally be bottom up phenomena. I've covered in previous articles and on an appearance on Fox News how this entire "Tea Parties" event is a sham and a fraud manufactured by the big Republican Think tanks and heavy hitters in the RNC like Dick Armey, Newt Gingrich, Steve Forbes and many others. People do not respond to manufactured efforts to create grassroots movements. I don't care what the reason or their political viewpoints. The few people who did attend were the far right tinfoil hat set as shown in these CNN videos:



If the embed fails, click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlR5Rxfk67o



If the embed fails, click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6G3fvNhdoc0

What does this effort tell us and what will be the Fallout

The first thing this tells us is how desperate the Republican establishment is to try to put something, anything out there to pull down President Obama's popularity. Obama's job approval since inauguration has been steady at between 60% and 70% http://www.gallup.com/poll/113980/Gallup-Daily-Obama-Job-Approval.aspx . Over two thirds of Americans are confident in Obama's handling of the economy http://www.gallup.com/poll/117415/Americans-Confident-Obama-Economy.aspx . For only the second time in over 50 years, more than half of Americans think the amount they are paying in taxes is fair, or, get this, too low! http://www.gallup.com/poll/117433/Views-Income-Taxes-Among-Positive-1956.aspx . If you turn back the clock by 8-15 years, this kind of popularity was what caused the Republican establishment to go after Bill Clinton non-stop until they could find something with which to tarnish him. Republicans seem to understand that if they let a Democratic President who is popular and is successful with the economy complete his term without putting a blemish on him, the Republican Party is finished for the near future. The power players behind the Republican Party know that Obama's economic plan is going to be successful and they know that when that happens, if you think that Obama is popular now, wait until he brings back the economy. Republicans are desperate to hurt Obama before that happens.

The most dramatic effect of this failure will be felt by Fox News. Fox News sacrificed the remaining shreds of its journalistic integrity to promote these Tea Parties only to have them fail miserably. Just see this pathetic video of Fox News' pandering for this event:



If the embed fails, click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmmz8Lf8mbk

If it begins a stringent program to become "Fair and Balanced" right now, it would take five years for them to be taken seriously again (were they ever taken seriously by anyone other than hard-core far-right ideologues?). Rupert Murdoch reacted to the last crisis at News Corp, the racist cartoon that featured a Chimp as President Obama, by firing one or more managers/editors responsible and reading the riot act to the rest of the folks involved. One wonders how he will handle this monstrous failure by those most responsible for deciding Fox should eschew ethical behavior and promote the Tea Parties. Should Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Neil Cavuto and Michelle Malkin, i.e. those Fox News correspondents most visibly responsible for Fox News ownership of Tea Parties' marketing, fear for their jobs? One would think so. As I said in my article yesterday "Tea Parties are a Sham and a Fraud - Part 3" (See below for link), Colleges and Universities going forward will almost certainly use Fox' coverage and ownership of the Tea Parties as a negative example whenever journalistic ethics are taught. I can't see News Corp's board of directors finding that prospect pleasant.

In terms of long-term political fallout, there will not be any. None of the people who attended these events would ever vote Democratic anyway and no one who might vote Democratic would be influenced by the kinds of things these people said or wrote on their signs. Within 3-5 days, none of the rest of America will remember that these Tea Parties happened.

-------------------------------------------------------

Previous reporting & appearances by me on Tea Parties:

Tea Parties - Crackbrained right wing protests to occur on April 15th - http://www.opednews.com/articles/Tea-Parties--Crackbrained-by-Steven-Leser-090410-987.html

Appearance on Fox News' Neal Cavuto Show - http://www.foxnews.com/video/index.html?playerId=videolandingpage&streamingFormat=FLASH&referralObject=4351058&referralPlaylistId=949437d0db05ed5f5b9954dc049d70b0c12f2749

Tea Parties are a Sham and a Fraud – Part 3 - http://www.opednews.com/articles/Tea-Parties-are-a-Sham-and-by-Steven-Leser-090414-111.html

[Blue_Roses]

1. what gets me is how stupid these people are...

Obama has cut taxes and done many things that will benefit most of these idiots out there waving their hate. Some people are just STUCK on STUPID I guess:eyes:

[Arugula Latte]

2. I love it.

I haven't really think about all the money they wasted. Heh heh heh.

[Arugula Latte]

19. Scratch that "think" above and make it "thought."

*late-night-posting brain strikes again*

[jgraz]

3. Not true -- they drew almost exactly what we leftist commie fascists predicted

[LynnTheDem]

4. Funny thing is, Pres. Obama's ratings went UP 1% today.

Fox "News"; EPIC FAIL.

Glad they wasted so much $, glad they publicly outed themselves as not-News, glad they pissed off a few more of the remaining moderate (almost-normal) republicans.

[Politicalboi]

41. They not only wasted their money but

We all had to spend money for the police, fire and ambulances for the "events". And like on Rachel's show yesterday they used mostly parks which are paid for with our tax dollars. And according Neil Cavoodo they had 15,000 here in Ca. LOL! Even though he was told maybe 5,000 were there he Foxed it up to 15,000.

[thelordofhell]

5. The message is clear......don't advertise on FOX news

They can't even reach half a million....IN THE WHOLE COUNTRY. That should tell advertisers to go anywhere but.........

Festering
Old
Xcrement

(pardon my spelling)

[4lbs]

6. As I said in another thread, I think the total of the teabaggers reached about 20,000 if one adds up

all the towns they were at today.

That's the low-end for a typical Obama rally that was held last year.

[stevenleser]

7. And that would have been true if they hadn't brought in celebrities and bands in some locations

There were around 10,000-16,000 at the event in San Antonio because of some band they brought in whose name escapes me, perhaps it was called 'Nuge"?

If you subtract the 4-5 locations where the event was sexed up, the numbers are REALLY, REALLY small.

[bleever]

8. You bastard. FOX reported,

and the people decided...

Not to come!

NOW how does it feel???


Great work on this whole deal, sir.

[Crunchy Frog]

9. There aren't THAT many people who like the taste of testicles?

[stevenleser]

20. LOL, and as I opened this OP to check on responses, I was treated to an add for "BJs"

:evilgrin:

:rofl:

:spray:

:hide:

[yowzayowzayowza]

10. The numbers won't matter to 'em going forward.

They'll use it as a propaganda fulcrum til they can gin up another one. "Thousands of All American conservatives using their free speech to advocate" bla bla bla.... It'll serve as populist justification for serving up their drivel... no more, no less.

[stevenleser]

11. See Rachel drive a stake through the heart of the Tea Bag movement

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6936wGmlto

[tuvor]

12. I'm still waiting for the impressive aerial photos.

[stevenleser]

17. Something tells me you will be waiting for a long time...

Oh sure, the top two or three locales might look passable, but the rest would be embarrassments. The organizers are not going to release them.

[Stagecoach]

23. If they did show any

May want to look closely to make sure the pictures aren't of the same people. Use the same aerial photos yet try to pass them off as if they're from different cities.

[NatBurner]

29. teabag aerial photos = some guy on a ladder with a camera

[Veruca Salt]

44. As you can see from this shot...

the crowds were HUGH!



Oh wait... you mean that's not from the teabagging party?? :rofl:

[rpannier]

13. Let's not forget

The Million March required people to leave their cities and go to DC for the event

The teabaggers only had to go down the street or at the most several miles away.

If they had done the Million Man March the same way, they'd have had 8 Million Men

[tavalon]

14. That's because they didn't know what teabagging really is

Sex sells. Kinky sex sells even better. They should have had live demos using some of the "faux" news commentators, get a few money shots, they would have had lookie loos the likes of which they have never seen.

[obiwan]

15. I went to a "teabagging" party in Long Beach, CA. today...

There were 20-30 people there. (There are 450,000 people in Long Beach.) They didn't have a clue. They yelled at me because I had a sign pointing out that most services (streets, sidewalks,parks, libraries, etc.) were paid for with TAXES. They were mean and surly. I got the distinct impression that they were mad because Obama won. Virtually everybody left after one hour. Back to work, no doubt.

Reminded me of Monty Python's "Life Of Brian" where the monks were walking in a line, chanting, and hitting themselves in the head with bricks.

Well, to paraphrase a well-worn right wing mantra, "Get over it."

Obana's margin of victory in the '08 election was 2-1/2 times what Bush's was in 2004. Now THAT's a mandate!

The organizer of this "teabagging" party failed to get the necessary permit. She also pushed my wife and told us we couldn't be there. After I told her we could because there were two of us, (Under local law, you need 3 or more to have an "unlawful assembly") and after I told her I would summon the police if she kept harrassing us, she left us alone. And we left them alone.

Totally clueless, and I predict this "movement" will die out of its own accord. (Too much effort.) Either that or they will become radicalized and be shot by the Guard. Ignorance of what is is no excuse.

The organizer of this event was bitching online because she had no help and no money. Ain't that the Neoconservative way. Well, sister, get used to it unless you have a shitload of money. Reality bites, doesn't it?

As a home owner, I will continue to pay my property taxes as long as I use services paid for with taxes.

[tkmorris]

16. Hmm, let's see who wins.....

Denver, CO Tea Party crowd



Barack Obama in Oregon, MAY of 2008 (six months before election)


Hmm, that's pretty close. If only we had an accurate count...

[tridim]

43. That's Denver? I saw an "official" list that had Denver attendance at 5,000!

[KansDem]

18. "Tea Parties Fail to Draw Anywhere Near Predicted Attendance"

Might be why NPR did not open its 5:00 am newscast with anything about the Tea Baggers.

Maybe they knew it was a bust and didn't want to recreate their past roll as "FOX News Lite" by mentioning it...

[Teaser]

21. I'm so glad that the concept of an "Epic Fail" is going mainstream

awesome.

[Hellataz]

22. And the numbers they are toting are forged.

The numbers they had for my city were 5 times the amount of people that actually showed.

[Pacifist Patriot]

24. Shocked! Shocked I say.

[progressoid]

25. Oh c'mon. There were at least two dozen here

And one of them had a sign too!!

[cwcwmack]

26. they were everywhere here in SoCal...

there were a couple hundred at the Reagan Library, and 2 or 3 more rallies within 5 miles... there wasn't a crowd of more than 30,000 in any one place nationally...

At this point, don't diminish them... this smells like 1993 to me. All that militia/mcveigh/waco/ruby ridge vibe, remember? 2010 will be a big elecion... DEMS win big and the Repubs are literally DONE.

This should be encouraged by DU types... most of these people are 3rd Party types...

Face it.... 20-25 million are Limbaugh/Foam at the mouth Righties, and you can't win shit with 25 million votes.

[AtomicKitten]

27. No worries. Faux News is fully prepared to inflate the numbers.

n/t

[jenmito]

30. Did you watch KO last night where he showed video caught by the DKos of Cavuto tripling

the number of protestors in Sacramento, CA?: http://www.dailykos.com/ Video a little more than half way down the page.

[AtomicKitten]

31. I saw it. Cavuto caught with his pants around his ankles.

KO kicks ass!!!

[jenmito]

32. Yup, yet Cavuto is on today still talking about the huge crowds and the "Obama supporters" he spoke

with (funny we didn't see any of THOSE interviews on tape), and he's slamming Dems. who think this was NOT a grassroots protest. They have no shame at Faux!

[AtomicKitten]

35. It was quintessential astroturfing!

It would be great theater if it wasn't so lame and pathetic.

[jenmito]

36. I agree.

:hi:

[stevenleser]

33. Is anyone else covering that?

If not, that is my article for tomorrow morning.

[AtomicKitten]

34. It should be because it nicely encapsulates exactly what is wrong with Faux News.

And there is much wrong with Faux News.

By the way, I applaud your efforts on Faux News to get a word in edgewise. You interjected some salient points in the barrage of swill coming at you.

Well done.

[jenmito]

38. Nope. You should. Your last one sure caught their attention and you did a great

job on Faux! :yourock:

[nolabear]

28. I'm bettin' the tea bag sales didn't even spike.

I'll beat this dead horse again.

www.fivethirtyeight.com

About the number that attends Michigan State games.

*snort!*

[Cha]

37. "faux fanned falsehoods"..

<snip>

"The whole day was filled with Fox-fanned falsehoods, starting with the whole acronym the protests adopted after "teabag" became the subject of mucho deserved mocking. "Taxed Enough Already" presupposes that taxes will be raised. And it seems that the tea partyers simply think that Barack Obama is lying to them when he says that the taxes for the vast, vast majority of Americans are lower under his plan. (On his radio show, Alan Colmes was screaming at callers who kept insisting that Obama was raising taxes for everyone.) The protests were against some fantasy administration, a sandwich of fascism on a socialism bun covered in a secret sauce of tyranny. It's like prayer: you can't really prove that it matters, but, hey, someone told you it was a good idea to do it, so down on your knees you go."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5469085

[lunatica]

39. The very first sentence has tea baggers and swallow in the same sentence

snicker

[stevenleser]

40. I was wondering when people were going to notice my deliberate use of double entendres in the whole

1st paragraph. ;-)

[opihimoimoi]

42. Tea Smeee...its still a PIG...try as they might...all that lipstick meant shit...The GOP is FUCKED

Get a Clue Losers...the NEOCONS and PNACERs used you...to FOOL is to RULE....

You guys got had from the top.....the GOP TOP BRASS sold you guys down a river....

[Lyric]

45. Haha. Not a surprise at all.

I don't see why the idiots couldn't just be honest about why they were there.

"IT'S THE BLACK, STUPID."

I mean, that's what it all boils down to, right?

Fucking racist pieces of shit.

[badgerpup]

46. I'm reminded of the 'Great Sheeple Drive'...aka "Rummy's Wargasm'...

..aka 'America Supports You Freedom March....you know, where one was supposed to celebrate Our Freedom by walking up the street...after signing a loyalty oath and being searched for anything that could be remotely dangerous (and with armed Nat'l Guard standing every 100 feet or so).

IIRC, the numbers on that were disappointingly low...so low that civil servants were chivvied out of their offices and told to 'bring your family' in order to pad the numbers.

No high camera angles...woulda shown the disappointly low turnout; in fact all the shots were fudged to show 'yeah, see...there's people here!' only it wasn't anywhere near the number they were hoping for.
:blush:
It was over so quickly...and after all the hype that it had been given, too!

I :rofl: and :rofl: and :rofl:ed...