Tempest in a Boston
Tea Party teapot

IT all started with a July 12 routine daily briefing from a John Kerry campaign spokesperson announcing that the Kerry campaign would spend three million dollars on ads in the African-American and Latino media "to reach target audiences in the swing states."

The announcement made no mention of spending any money on the Asian Pacific Islander media.

The New California Media (NCM), a national coalition of ethnic media, quickly mobilized the Asian press to denounce the Kerry campaign for this apparent snub in a press conference on July 21.

Included in the press conference was Lito Gutierrez, Philippine News editor, Odette Keeley of ABS-CBN/The Filipino Channel, Peter Ho of the Chinese World Journal, Pan-Kyum Kim of the Korea Times, Joseph Leung of the Sing Tao Daily, Nam Nguyen of the Vietnamese Cali Today, and Kenji Taguma of the Japanese Nichi Bei Times.

On July 22, the San Francisco Chronicle featured the press conference with this headline, "Asian Media Rip Kerry Strategy, They say $3 million ad campaign snubs their community." The San Jose Mercury News reported on the same story but with a more balanced headline: "Kerry, Bush accused of snubbing Asian voters"

Both papers prominently quoted the same speaker. The San Jose Mercury News, for example, reported: "Lito Gutierrez, editor in chief of the 60,000-circulation Philippine News, said he was upset because the Kerry campaign media strategy "sends the negative message that some ethnic communities count more than others. I don't care so much about selling ads. But I want them to send the message that every one of our votes counts."

Gutierrez's words drew a swift rebuke from Vida Benavides, the Filipino-American consultant to the Democratic National Committee. In an e-mail to the Philippine News, Vida complained that the paper was not publishing the press releases sent by the Kerry campaign.

Benavides wrote: "Before you wage your criticism against the Kerry campaign and lack of Filipino-American involvement, we hope that you conduct due diligence by talking to many of the Filipino-American leaders who you know are involved with political and democratic activities."

Gutierrez found the tone to be "smug and condescending" and the comment "icing the gall." In his Philippine News column, Gutierrez informed Benavides that Philippine News doesn't "cover" press releases. "We ask our reporters to follow them up or throw them in the trash bin."

It was all a simple misunderstanding. The Kerry campaign announcement focused on media buys in the "battleground" or "swing" states. Unfortunately, neither California nor Hawaii is considered a state "in play." As a result, neither the Democrats nor the Republicans will likely spend money or time campaigning in the two states already considered "blue" or Kerry states.

Because it is estimated that half of all the Filipinos in the US live in California and another quarter live in Hawaii, the realities of the Electoral College means that the Filipino-American community would not have a significant impact in the November elections.

There are 14 states considered as "battleground states" and it is in those states where more than 90 percent of both candidates' campaign funds and time will be spent. Fortunately, among those states, Nevada, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Florida carry sizeable Filipino communities and, in those states, the Filipino community may impact the elections.
After all, Bush "won" Florida with only 567 votes (regardless of any dagdag-bawas allegations).

The Bush campaign had previously announced that it was going to spend millions in the Latino media as Latinos have significant populations in the swing states. The GOP announcement was also an indication that the Bush campaign had given up on the African-American community where it drew less than 10 percent of the vote in the 2000 elections.

Benavides complained that the Bush campaign was also snubbing the Asian Pacific Islander communities yet none of the participants in the July 21 press conference saw fit to criticize the Republicans.

What Benavides did not know was that Sandy Close, the director of New California Media and the one who organized the press conference, explained at the press conference that her group targeted the Kerry campaign because of the Democratic convention in Boston. "We'll move on to the Bush campaign when the Republican convention approaches," she said.

In a letter to Close which she disclosed at the July 21 press conference, Kerry campaign manager Mary Beth Cahill wrote that "it has always been the intention of the campaign" to advertise in Asian American media, and that it was working with advisers to "determine the best way to invest our resources."

Representative Mike Honda, D-California, a Kerry adviser and head of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, explained: "They (the Kerry people) understand the Asian American community is large but that it's also not monolithic. It breaks down into so many ethnic groups and languages, and it is so complex that it takes a sophisticated effort to reach out to voters."

The 2000 Census showed an Asian population of about 10 million with 4.7 million eligible to vote but with only 2.5 million actually registered as voters, according to a 2002 report.

The Filipino community should support the candidate or party that best represents our community's interests. But we have many interests and, in the next three months, we have to educate ourselves about our interests and our issues.

At the Boston convention, Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry sent a message to the APIA delegates: "Today Asian and Pacific Islander Americans represent the fastest growing ethnic group in the country. You are more involved in shaping our democracy than ever, and you make great contributions to America's cultural and political life every day. With your progressive and entrepreneurial spirit, you have made unprecedented strides in making America a more vibrant nation.

But we still have work to do. Despite the obstacles that you have overcome, too many Asian and Pacific Islander Americans continue to face challenges in improving their lives and the lives of their children. This year's convention will pave the way for our vision of a stronger economy, a stronger middle class, and more affordable and accessible health care.

As president, I will fight for all Americans -- including Asian and Pacific Islander Americans -- so you have the same opportunities as everyone else. I will work with Asian and Pacific Islander Americans to help you realize your limitless potential. I am grateful for your support at this convention, and look forward to working with you to build a stronger America for all."

A month from now at the Republican convention, we will examine the GOP platform.

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