Playmaker’s Blog

WHAT’S THE PLAY: Decoding Trump’s Election Day Delay

IF YOU’RE RESPONDING YOU’RE LOSING: How Trump, Zuckerberg and China Out-Play Us

AND HOW TO COUNTER THEIR PROPAGANDA Something needs to be said about the strategy of response: It’s a loser’s game. Responding to an attack, rant, brag, insult or lie – whether planned or improvised – seldom slows or stops aggressors. More often it revives them. Consider four examples:[1] TRUMP PLAYS When President Trump decries Democrats […]

ANATOMY of a STRATEGY: How President Trump flipped fascism (or tried)

And how his plays can be decoded, mapped and countered. Speaking at a July 3, 2020, rally at South Dakota’s Mount Rushmore National Memorial, President Donald Trump used influence strategies to excite his dedicated base – notably an attempt to reverse a rising perception that Republicans promote fascism. Using the Taxonomy of Influence Strategies as a reference, […]

Congratulations Brands. You Caught the Car. Now Run Away.

THE NINE-MINUTE MURDER of George Floyd was real and raw, and it deserved real and raw response. But when sports gear maker Nike dropped its Just Don’t Do It video I had to wonder if the counter-intuitive spot was more about self-interest than public service. By most standards the message was pitch-perfect, but its speed […]

ANATOMY of a NEWSJACKING: Unilever’s Dove BeSafe Campaign