Steve Jobs helped hatch Obama's mobile campaign for reelection

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Before he passed away late last year, Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs provided President Barack Obama's campaign manager with advice on how to capitalize on mobile technology and social networks during their reelection campaign.

Jim Messina, formerly Obama's White House deputy chief of staff and now his campaign manager, had two long, private conversations with Jobs last year, a profile in the latest issue of Bloomberg reveals. In those discussions, Jobs told Messina how he could exploit technology in new ways to reach and energize voters.

Jobs noted to Messina how much the digital world has changed since Obama first ran for office. For example, when Obama declared his campaign for presidency, the first-generation iPhone hadn't even been released.

Since the launch of the iPhone, the mobile space has radically changed, and Jobs told Messina that he needed to understand and capitalize on the changes.

"Last time you were programming only t a couple of channels (the Web and e-mail)," Jobs reportedly said. "This time, you have to program content to a much wider variety of channels —?Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, YouTube, Google —?because people are segmented in a very different way than they were four years ago."

According to Messina, Jobs "knew exactly where everything was going." The late Apple co-founder explained how Obama's reelection campaign could generate buzz with "viral" content online, and how that content needed to be "interesting and clean."

Obama
President Obama shown with an iPad 2. Photo via The White House.


Jobs wasn't the only high-profile executive Messina talked to after he took over as Obama's reelection campaign manager. Messina also spoke with officials from Facebook, Google, Microsoft, DreamWorks, Zynga and Salesforce in a monthlong tour around the country.

Among those he spoke to was filmmaker Steve Spielberg, who spent three hours telling Messina how to capture an audience's attention, and Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt, who said he considers Messina to be a "good friend."

Jobs' relationship with Obama has been well documented. Last year, before the public launch of the second-generation iPad, he personally gave the president an iPad 2, while Obama invited Jobs to a conference with a number of Silicon Valley executives.

And this year, Jobs was mentioned by Obama in the president's State of the Union address, while his widow, Laurene Powell Jobs, was seated directly behind First Lady Michelle Obama during the speech.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 60
    ryukryuk Posts: 29member
    Look I know it's political season ( & I know the mitt & Obama story are related to apple product but who cares If I want story on politics I'll check out CNN or fox I come here for tech news
  • Reply 2 of 60
    conrailconrail Posts: 489member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Ryuk View Post



    Look I know it's political season ( & I know the mitt & Obama story are related to apple product but who cares If I want story on politics I'll check out CNN or fox I come here for tech news


    But it's Dead Steve news!  That's more important than any actual tech news.  Rumor is a new report will detail what he had for lunch the day he was diagnosed with cancer!  

  • Reply 3 of 60
    applezillaapplezilla Posts: 941member


    Meanwhile, Rmoney's Campaign has gotten a boost from old-fashioned billionaires:


     


    Representative File Photo:


     


    image

  • Reply 4 of 60


    I hope Romney got advice from the guy behind the windows phone. 

  • Reply 5 of 60
    gordygordy Posts: 1,004member


    Oh well, nobody’s perfect.

  • Reply 6 of 60
    mdcraggmdcragg Posts: 73member


    ...and what is George Soros with his support for Obama?  A new-fangled billionaire?

  • Reply 7 of 60
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member


    I'd rather not talk about US politics; it just makes me angry.

  • Reply 8 of 60
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    I somehow don't believe this at all.

    I also don't want to discuss it.
  • Reply 9 of 60

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post



    Jobs noted to Messina how much the digital world has changed since Obama first ran for office. For example, when Obama declared his campaign for presidency, the first-generation iPhone hadn't even been released.

    Since the launch of the iPhone, the mobile space has radically changed, and Jobs told Messina that he needed to understand and capitalize on the changes.

    "Last time you were programming only t a couple of channels (the Web and e-mail)," Jobs reportedly said. "This time, you have to program content to a much wider variety of channels —?Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, YouTube, Google —?because people are segmented in a very different way than they were four years ago."

     


     


    I love how Jobs rewrites history.


     


    Introducing the Obama 08 iPhone App

  • Reply 10 of 60
    flaneurflaneur Posts: 4,526member
    This story is about technological change affecting the way politics is done. The Steve angle is incidental color.

    The medium is the message. The last time communications-media change drove history like it's doing now, we had a confrontation over the morality of the Viet Nam war. Television brought the war into the living room. Right before that, Kennedy became the first TV president. We just saw pocket phones enable, if not cause, political changes in North Africa. One side will get this and try to use it more than the other, which will be clueless.
  • Reply 11 of 60
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    Curious why this belongs on AI? I don't come to AI for politics.
  • Reply 12 of 60
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    rogifan wrote: »
    Curious why this belongs on AI? I don't come to AI for politics.

    If discussion here gets out of hand…

    HEAR THAT? DON'T TALK POLITICS HERE. TALK ABOUT THE CONCEPT OF GENERIC POLITICAL HAPPENINGS AND THEIR MOVE TO MORE MODERN FORMS OF COMMUNICATION AND NETWORKING

    …we'll probably just move it to PO, no biggie.

    But I agree; there shouldn't be a political subforum here at all.
  • Reply 13 of 60
    rodentrodent Posts: 49member
    At least Dead Steve don't have to put up with this election crap. He gave Nobama advice and then said,, "I'm outta here" and died!
  • Reply 14 of 60
    Jobs had conversation about technology.
    Surprise surprise.


    The 'Corporate Apple' come across to me as agnostic and could be accused of being both extreme right and extreme left in their business strategy.
  • Reply 15 of 60
    onhkaonhka Posts: 1,025member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Rodent View Post



    At least Dead Steve don't have to put up with this election crap. He gave Nobama advice and then said,, "I'm outta here" and died!


     


    A-hole

  • Reply 16 of 60
    radjinradjin Posts: 165member
    Not a legacy I would care to have written on my headstone. He already told him he's a one term president. Should have left it at that.
  • Reply 17 of 60
    radjinradjin Posts: 165member
    Spoiler:
    I somehow don't believe this at all.

    I also don't want to discuss it.


    But you did anyway...
  • Reply 18 of 60


    Stick to Apple software and hardware.  If I want to know about this crap, I will turn on MSNBC...

  • Reply 19 of 60
    rot'napplerot'napple Posts: 1,839member


    'Mitt Romney would make a "STELLAR" President!  Now if you'll excuse me, I see a hot chick, and I have to get back to work for the American people. *wink* - Bill Clinton


     


    slickwilly2.jpg


     


     


    Steve may have helped with the new mobile.


     


    Apple-iPhone-The-Simpsons-Couch-Gag-1.jpg


     


    But sorry Barrack, not even Steve Jobs can help you now.  2012 will not be like 2008 or 1984!


     


    Schermata-2011-02-09-a-20.10.09.png

  • Reply 20 of 60
    nagrommenagromme Posts: 2,834member


    His advice was two words: “Blackberry...? No."

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