Why McCain Lost

Eerie Echoes of Bush -- i.e., George H.W. Bush

Posted by Bob Garfield on 11.03.08 @ 11:34 AM

OK, put aside the war. Put aside the economy. Put aside the public's dissatisfaction with President George W. Bush. Obviously, the odds were against John McCain in this race. But he certainly didn't help himself with his campaign strategy -- or, shall I say, 37 campaign strategies, replete with inconsistent and sometimes contradictory messages.

'Paging Dr. Mengele. Paging Dr. Mengele...'

When 'German Engineering' Yields the Wrong Associations

Posted by Bob Garfield on 10.22.08 @ 10:56 AM

Here's a letter from a reader:

Victory!

Comcastmustdie.com Has Shamed Comcast Into a Modicum of Respect for Its Customers

Posted by Bob Garfield on 07.30.08 @ 03:34 PM

Photo Illustration: Jesper Goransson

Comcastmustdie.com, the blog, began a mere 11 months ago with this simple preamble:

Actually, I have no deathwish for Comcast or any other gigantic, blundering, greedy, arrogant corporate monstrosity. What I do have is the earnest desire for such companies to change their ways. This site offers an opportunity -- for you to vent your grievances (civilly, please) and for Comcast to pay close attention.

I advise you to include your customer number in your post; this will give Comcast the chance to contact you and work on your problem. If it does so, I encourage you to post an update, giving credit where credit is due. Meantime, be aware you may be the target of online phishers trying to get personal information from you. DO NOT REPLY TO EMAILS CLAIMING TO BE FROM COMCAST. Deal with them only by phone.

Congratulations. You are no longer just an angry, mistreated customer. Nor, I hope, are you just part of an e-mob. But you are a revolutionary, wresting control from the oligarchs, and claiming it for the consumer. Your power is enormous. Use it wisely.

Since then, tens of thousands of consumers have visited the site. Thousands have posted there. And hundreds who have followed my advice to leave their Comcast account numbers have gotten follow-up calls from the company, most of which have led to resolution of the problem.

As stories last week in The New York Times and Washington Post demonstrate, Comcast has institutionalized the practice of listening, in live forums around the country but especially on the internet, to resolve individual problems and learn about the (many, gaping) holes in its customer-service operations.

Does this solve the biggest part of their structural problems? No, not by a long shot. They acquired cable systems too fast and have been inexcusably slow in building network-wide infrastructures for installation, repair and the most rudimentary customer-relations management. In short, they still totally suck. (As Comcast quality czar Rick Germano euphemistically frames the situation, "There's a lot of upside for us.") But they are investing a lot of money to build those very structures, and have turned a corner in corporate culture by:

1) Appointing senior VP Germano, who is charged with monitoring all customer-service issues and building an infrastructure for preventing problems and addressing them.

2) Having an in-house team poring over the internet looking for signs of trouble and discontent.

3) Creating mechanisms for real-time communication between customer-relations employees and repair/install dispatchers.

4) Shifting the incentives for frontline employees from "productivity" to quality; i.e., getting the problem solved versus getting on to the next caller/service order at the expense of the current one.

5) Resolving to host ("within a year," according to Germano) some equivalent of Comcastmustdie.com on its own site, rather than depend on a third party to entertain the criticism, frustration, anger and suggestions of its customers.

"We get it," says corporate spokeswoman Jenni Moyer. "And not only do we get it, we're not just listening. We're also changing the way we do things. And we're moving from being reactive to proactive."

From Germano's perspective, Comcastmustdie.com has been a double-edged sword. In certain respects, he says, "I wish it had never happened." But he acknowledged that it was part of "a bigger wake-up call." I asked him when he'll be ready to cry "uncle."

The Republican National Committee Is a Bunch of Oxycontin-Gulping Pedophiles

Ha Ha. It's a Parody!

Posted by Bob Garfield on 07.29.08 @ 03:01 PM

The latest anti-Barack Obama video by the RNC purports to imagine what a German pro-Obama video would look like, considering all the adoration the Democrat received while abroad. To put it together, a Republican videographer (perhaps accurately identifying himself to German interviewees, but I wouldn't bet on it) got folks from the Obamafest crowd to rave about his qualities.

'You a Disgrace to the Man Race'

So let me shoot you with Snickers bars. Or, better yet...

Posted by Bob Garfield on 07.29.08 @ 01:20 AM

....KNOXVILLE, Tenn., July 28 -- An out-of-work truck driver accused of opening fire and killing two people at a Unitarian Universalist church apparently targeted the congregation out of hatred for its support of liberal social policies, including its acceptance of gays, police said Monday. A four-page letter found in Jim D. Adkisson's SUV indicated that he targeted the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church because "he hated the liberal movement" and was upset with "liberals in general, as well as gays,"

Dude! Dude! Dude! Dude! Dude!

One Problem with Repetition

Posted by Bob Garfield on 04.29.08 @ 04:14 PM

We are old and forgetful, which explains why we're a few months late with this. But we're not that forgetful, which is why we're bringing this up in the first place: Bud Light has recently been re-running a spot from DDB Chicago, about a guy who runs into various situations, each of which prompts him to exclaim/comment/inquire "Dude."

Lost Souls?

Trying to Explain the Difference Between Commentary and Vandalism

Posted by Bob Garfield on 03.02.08 @ 08:50 PM

Why do people kill themselves? Schizophrenia. Depression. Despair. Agony. Shame. Who can say?

Clinton's a Lying Liar Who Lies

No Stars for Radio Spot

Posted by Bob Garfield on 01.24.08 @ 05:32 PM

So are all Clintons liars? The wife of President I Did Not Have Sex With that Woman Miss Lewinsky, getting unnerved by Barack Obama's success in the early balloting for the Democratic nomination, has resorted on the stump and a recent radio ad to the family tradition:

Jingle This

In Search of a "Comcast Must Die" Theme Song

Posted by Bob Garfield on 11.07.07 @ 12:46 PM

Over at Comcastmustdie.com, I'm advertising for a theme song. It will be used for an upcoming national media event dedicated to shaming Comcast into behaving less like a soulless monopoly and more like just folks.

The Hammer? Mona Shaw. The Anvil? Comcastmustdie.com

The Comcast Jihad Is in Full Swing

Posted by Bob Garfield on 10.22.07 @ 12:45 AM

My jihad against Comcast began a month ago. Two weeks ago, the comcastmustdie.com website went up. There are more than 700 comments so far.