Exploiting Hollywood 1980.

Chapter 1475 Ronald Spielberg Award-Winning Alliance Under Attack

"Good morning, America. President William has attached great importance to the health care bill. Before his trip, he delivered a speech in Congress, hoping that the lawmakers would pass the universal health care bill... and today we are honored to have the First Lady come to the studio... You guessed it, she will also talk about the health care bill..."

Ronald looked at Mrs. Rodham's clothes and hairstyle on TV. She was still dressed like a typical Southern woman, in an outdated style. He wondered why she was still pretending to be a Southern lady when she was already in the White House?
Rodham spoke freely on ABC's morning news program. She has appeared on TV a lot recently, targeting different groups, such as Catholics, blacks, other ethnic minorities, and single urban women, and made different sales pitches for each group. In a nutshell, universal health care is for your own good.

There were also quite a few ads opposing the health care bill. One was immediately broadcast during the break after ABC's morning news interviewed the First Lady. This was obviously a time carefully chosen by the opposition.

The picture is obviously filtered with colors, creating a sense of the good old days. A family of three living in the suburbs, the husband said to his wife on the sofa, "Another universal health insurance?"

"Yes, this new health care bill forces us to buy mandatory medical insurance again." What the wife was holding in her hand was the draft of Rodham's health care, a thick book.

"Another agency with tens of thousands of bureaucrats... Another bureaucratic agency with a billion-dollar budget..." The husband put on his glasses, and then they began to complain about how it violated the right to free choice. If they bought commercial medical insurance, they would have to buy this insurance again. There were all kinds of traps in it..."

At the end of the ad, it was also said that the ad was funded by a PAC aimed at monitoring government corruption.

Ronald smiled. It seemed that the battle was very intense. The news said that President William threatened the House of Representatives that if the health care bill they proposed was too different from the one proposed by his wife Rodham and did not include a clause on compulsory health care for all, he would use his veto power to send the bill back to the House of Representatives for reconsideration.

This threat is not empty. If the President really uses his veto power, these congressmen will probably have a hard time explaining to the voters in their own districts, because health care is a major issue that concerns people across the country. It will be too late for them to regret if this year's midterm elections are overturned by angry voters.

"Zi..."

The commercial that has been appearing frequently on TV shows recently and smears Rodham's health insurance suddenly paused and then cut. The interior environment and furniture were kept similar to the original commercial, but the two leading actors were suddenly replaced.

"I'm looking at the Rodham health care bill..."

"Uh..." Ronald froze. The actors of the couple on the screen were replaced by the first couple. Rodham, who was sitting on the sofa, was pointing to the draft bill in the hands of President William, which was thicker than a phone book.

"Health care reform, isn't that a good thing?" President William was dressed similarly to the one in the previous smear advertisement.

"It's a good thing, but some of the details in it scared me to death..."

"for example?"

"For example, here on page 3,764, it says that under the new Rodham health care bill, we may get sick!"

"terrible……"

"Right? It's not over yet. Look at page 12,655. It says here that we will all die in the end..."

"Ah, you're saying let William and Rodham impose all these new bureaucrats and taxes on us, and we'll all die in the end?"

"This won't work, it's too terrible, there must be a better way..." The first couple finally said in unison.

Ronald was stunned. Who gave this bad idea to First Lady Rodham?
"This ad is sponsored by those interest groups to scare your pants off

"What!" Ronald saw the black screen at the end of the advertisement, and the President and the First Lady did not say a single positive thing about the health care bill.

"Which 'author' director shot this for his own amusement? I'm afraid this ad will have a counter-effective effect on promoting health insurance..." Ronald couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he did not agree to First Lady Rodham's request to help her shoot the ad.

Judging from the quality of this ad, it seems that Rodham is also a superficial person. He appears to be smart, but in fact he is easily deceived by his subordinates and has no common sense at all.

This advertisement was purely to make Rodham happy. As a first lady who claims to be an intellectual woman, she responded ventily to the irony of these advertisements that defamed her.

But this ad had the opposite effect on the audience. America is a vast country with many evangelicals in the South, and there are many voters who saw this ad and did not see the irony, but believed it.

They already believed in the economics of former President Ronald Reagan, and when they saw Rodham and William's irony, they probably couldn't understand the complex rhetoric at all, and might even think they were confessing.

Besides, how can the last sentence of an advertisement say that there is a better way? The health care bill led by the first lady was facing opposition and boycott by members of the House of Representatives. Aren't you giving yourself a handle?

Political opponents can easily re-edit this ad, leaving in your mocking words and then deleting the mocking content. People who don't know the truth will think that the first couple has admitted defeat. Then what are we supporting?
"Honey, you're not the director of the commercial, what are you worried about..." Diane also watched the commercial nearby, and saw Ronald's concerns and tried to persuade him. From her perspective as an actor, President William's acting was natural and fresh, while First Lady Rodham's nervous lines were all wrong, and the difference was obvious.

"That's why I'm worried..." Ronald quickly picked up the phone and called his agent Richard, telling him that if anyone from the White House asked for feedback, he should say that the ad made Ronald laugh, and it would be nice if they added a slogan for Rodham's health insurance at the end, so that everyone would know who was quietly working hard to promote universal health insurance...

Then he thought about it and called his cousin Donna and brother-in-law Doug Jr., asking them to donate a few thousand dollars on his behalf to the PAC that promotes health care, so that if Rodham's team called to ask, they would know what to say.

……

After Ronald finished explaining the matter, he went to the banquet with Diane. As the Oscar voting is approaching, canvassing for votes is an essential part.

As the chairman of a listed company, Ronald would not normally attend parties or banquets, but this time many senior executives from major film studios were also there, so his presence was needed.

"Ronald..."

"Michael..."

When Ronald entered the banquet hall, he saw Michael Douglas was also there. As soon as he saw Ronald, he came over, put his arm around Ronald's shoulders affectionately, and talked and laughed all the way.

Some of the lower-level people present felt that the two big guys were going to discuss something very important.

“Why is someone spreading the news that your advertising business has been snatched away?”

Michael Douglas was actually informing Ronald that some Jewish and high-level circles were spreading the news that Ronald's advertising business had been snatched away by someone recently, and that a series of marketing and public relations related to health insurance had been snatched away by a Jewish person who had close ties with the White House, just like Ronald snatched away the Coca-Cola advertising order from Ovitz.

Although many Hollywood directors and photographers come from advertising backgrounds, the industry still looks down on advertising professionals. It’s just that the advertiser this time is too famous, so it has caused some reactions in the industry.

"Hehe..." Ronald glanced at Diane, who had gone to chat with other actresses. So he could talk to Michael Douglas about some sensitive things.

"My advertising company does not accept business from politicians... This principle has been set since my company went public..."

Ronald's reasoning is still very convincing. In New York and some nearby states, the Donald and the Elephant parties are still evenly matched, especially in local elections. New York currently has two senators, one Donald and one Elephant, which is different from California, which has completely turned blue.

So it makes perfect sense for DDH Media, which is based on the East Coast, to steer clear of some clients politically.

"So that's how it is. I thought someone was deliberately spreading rumors..."

Ronald looked at Michael Douglas, who still didn't quite believe it, and added, "This ad isn't that easy to make. If the bill fails to be voted on, or worse, then..."

"Really?" Michael Douglas was shocked. Ronald said something worse, that is, it can't even be put to a vote in the House of Representatives, which is really embarrassing for the First Lady who led this matter. Even the President's threat to use the veto power will become a joke.

"My sources said that many people in the House of Representatives are dissatisfied with the first lady's exposure to the public, and what she did was a bit too radical..."

"Hmm..." Michael Douglas believed it completely. He had heard many similar rumors. Many people in California felt that this bill was too radical, especially forcing people who already had commercial insurance to pay for the so-called Rodham health insurance.

The vast majority of union members in Hollywood have health insurance benefits provided by the union. There is no additional benefit in spending money to buy compulsory health insurance. The portion they pay is likely to be diverted to other poor people who cannot afford health insurance.

Although these actors say nice things about progress and equality, they complain a lot when they have to pay for it. Hollywood actors only sound good, and many of them don’t have a lot of money…

"By the way, Steven seemed to be looking for you just now..." Michael Douglas said casually.

Ronald nodded and whispered something to Richard beside him. Someone was spreading rumors and trying to say bad things about him, and this matter had to be dealt with.

Richard took the order and left, and Ronald went to a small hall connected to the banquet hall, where Spielberg, who liked privacy, chatted with his friends.

"Steven, oh, Mr. Katzenberg..."

Ronald discovered that the person chatting with Spielberg was actually Disney's COO Jeffrey Katzenberg.

"Call me Jeff, Ronald and we are old friends. I'm leaving first, you and Steven can chat slowly..." Katzenberg stood up and shook hands with Ronald with a smile. He gave Spielberg a look and left.

"Michael told me you were looking for me?" Ronald thought to himself. Spielberg had asked him about how to manage a large group a few days ago. Was he trying to poach Katzenberg by meeting him this time? However, his production company was not big, and other distribution, television, and media companies were not as big as DDH. Could it be that he had found an investor and wanted to go public or acquire a production company?

"Someone is messing with the Oscars. We can't just let it go like this..." Spielberg was very direct and pulled Ronald back from his wild thoughts.

"Who?" Ronald was also unhappy. This year, he and Spielberg reached an offensive and defensive alliance. They handled public relations for different awards separately, and paid special attention to not stepping on each other's projects.

So far, they have done very well. Spielberg's main PR direction is Best Director and Best Picture, while Ronald's main PR direction is Best Actor and a few minor awards. They don't interfere with each other.

Spielberg said this, which means that there must be someone who will challenge them in these awards.

"Didn't Michael tell you?"

"Xavi?" Ronald sneered, "With his limited ability, he thinks he can challenge our alliance?"

"I heard that he was spreading rumors that your listed company was in crisis... He also said bad things about our movie in some private canvassing occasions..."

Ronald still looked down on Harvey Weinstein's small company. He didn't have enough strength to do large-scale public relations, while the medium-sized Miramax made money by making independent films.

Because the marketing budget is not enough, we work very hard on PR for the three major European awards and Hollywood awards such as the Oscars and Golden Globes. Because nominations and awards are also free publicity to some extent.

However, most of his tricks were copied from Ronald. For example, he sent videotapes, held private screenings for old directors and old stars, and sent various coupons to these old judges.

If these tactics were first used a few years ago, they would still be effective, but today, PR tactics have evolved a lot.

For example, public relations with old stars and directors, vouchers for vintage dresses, and special screenings of movies in nursing homes have been adopted by all competitors and have no effect.

Only people like Ronald and Spielberg have the resources to restore their old films, organize re-screenings of old films, do retrospectives of certain directors or stars in film reviews, and nominate them in academies, unions and other institutions, and add an honorary award for these old people in certain awards. These are the monopoly resources of people with status and position like Ronald and Spielberg.

With the media resources in Ronald's hands, it was easy to attack these ignorant competitors. The producer and director of "Groundhog Day" who had previously attacked Ronald's production project no longer had the energy to say that the Oscar nomination was unfair. I'm afraid that half of his pitiful assets would be spent on legal fees for the lawsuit and responding to the union investigation.

As for Harvey Weinstein?

The two major films he participated in investing this year, The Remains of the Day and The Piano Lesson, both received eight nominations.

The Remains of the Day has been nominated for several important awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay. The Piano Lesson has also been nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Cinematography. The leading actress, Holly Hunter, is the biggest favorite for the Best Actress award.

As soon as Ronald got home, he signed a check to increase public relations investment in these awards and carry out precise sniping against Harvey. Even if the nominees of Ronald's project did not win the award, they would dilute the other party's votes.

This is how Ronald does things now, communicating with others through actions rather than words. When Harvey tastes the bitterness of losing multiple nominations, perhaps he will reflect on himself and see if he has offended someone he shouldn't have offended.

(End of this chapter)