Who is Bubba? Does he "truly out-number the conservative and the progressive base"? Should the Democrats consider, even woo him in the upcoming elections?
JellyPuddin got the ball rolling with "Why Bubba votes GOP". Then NBBooks and hundreds of others replied.
Marshall McLuhan said
At the speed of light, policies and political parties yield place to charismatic images.
The Democratic party would be more successful if it started to conceive of itself as a party of images and learn from one of Bubba's most powerful icons, the guy he aspires to be: the Marlboro Man .
The crew at Leo Burnett's advertising agency took the raw material of American history and created the modern image of a cowboy. They were trying to revive a cigarette brand which had originally been marketed to women. So the Marlboro man is real only in the sense any media creation is real. He represents something that people instantly recognize, and in this case, love; America. He couldn't be anything else but American. Don't mess with the Myth. Along with self-reliance and freedom, the cowboy represents simplicity in an increasingly complex and frustrating world.
See him in your mind's eye. Look, don't talk. Look at the image. Use a different sense.
McLuhan said:
Historians and archaeologists will one day discover that the ads of our time are the richest and most faithful reflections that any society ever made of its entire range of activities.
and
Politics will eventually be replaced by imagery. The politician will be only too happy to abdicate in favor of his image, because the image will be much more powerful than he could ever be.
It seems to me that Psychographics is better than Demographics as an analytical approach to use in the art of persuasion. For a quick overview of how marketers conceive their many markets see the VALS 2 model. This device can be used for politics too. Ours is not a chocolate/vanilla/strawberry world. 31derful flavors doesn't begin to do justice to the choices available.
The problem with Bubba is that he occupies merely two dimensions. He's a cartoon, a stereotype, a useful shortform. (Even kids know that Mighty Mouse is a cartoon. Superman's a real guy. There's no way a cartoon could beat up a real guy.) Especially when that guy is Bubba's hero.
Let's flesh him out. Bubba's probably part of the Believers group that makes up roughly 11% of the American population.
Believers
Like Thinkers, Believers are motivated by ideals. They are conservative, conventional people with concrete beliefs based on traditional, established codes: family, religion, community, and the nation. Many Believers express moral codes that are deeply rooted and literally interpreted. They follow established routines, organized in large part around home, family, community, and social or religious organizations to which they belong.
As consumers, Believers are predictable; they choose familiar products and established brands. They favor American products and are generally loyal customers.
Sam Walton made his fortune on "Made in America". His heirs have chucked out most of the old man's principals. But the Believers have made a habit of Wal-Mart.
The Marlboro man might have some trouble relating. Especially to women. Although he has a hard time showing it, he loves his mother. In his own way he cares for his wife and daughters too. Just look how his states have ratified the Equal Rights Amendment. Convince Bubba that his hero has some progressive in him and Bubba will follow right along too.
Find the root source of a progressive belief that is also a traditional belief. Express it using an example that anyone could see is right. A cowboy would help the neighbors with a barn raising, right? Perhaps WWJWD? What would John Wayne do?
WWJD?
It doesn't have to be religious, but aren't progressive beliefs about:
comforting the afflicted, and those who mourn?
being gentle as a means of inheriting the earth?
hungering and thirsting for justice?
being merciful and pure of heart?
being peacemakers?
What would Jesus think of my paraphrase and mental link to the heavenly URL?
That cowboy surely is the image that should be put in the progressive frame.