So now we know who it was that took Apple's iPod version of their famous 1984 ad and turned it into an anti-Hillary YouTube hit that has now been viewed more than 2 million times.

A lot has been written about the ad. If it would have any impact on the campaign. Did Obamma know about the ad before it appeared on YouTube? And a lot of breathless speculation and hype the role of YouTube in the 08 election and how "This Changes Everything." And truly YouTube may have an impact on the election as anyone with the ability to lash together a political video seeks their get 15 minutes of fame by making the YouTube video that brings down candidate X.

The one player that has been missing in this entire story is Apple Inc.

Apple has a reputation of being a fierce defender of its brand and its intellectual property. And yet when someone alters their landmark ad. The ad that launched the Macintosh brand. When they even go so far as to manipulate Apple's logo. Apple says nothing? No letter from Apple's lawyers to YouTube demanding the video be taken down?

The Board of Directors of Apple tilts very clearly to the left. Far enough to the left that it includes The Al Goreacle. And yet when their ad is taken, their logo manipulated, in an attack against a fellow traveler they said nothing.

I know, I know. The whole ad thing falls under fair use and there really isn't anything Apple could have actually done legally. But if Steve Jobs was backing Hillary, you can bet they would have at least done the cease and desist letter. Does this mean that Hillary lacks support among the moneyed left of Silicon Valey?

Posted by: Stephen Macklin at 08:22 AM | No Comments | Add Comment