June 23, 2009

"Hi Ann, Congrats on a great blog it’s very informative and empowering."

Empowering. What the...?
I am part of Warner Bros PR and I am reaching to leading blogs like yours in hopes of gaining your support for a some really powerful and empowering new series on our sister company’s network TNT.
Hmm... yeah? Empowering?
We are thrilled to announce the season premiere of SAVING GRACE with HOLLY HUNTER and the all-new medical drama HAWTHORNE with JADA PINKETT SMITH.
So by empowering, you mean, women? Presumably, because I'm a woman and I have a blog, my blog is empowering. I suppose if I eat a sandwich, it empowers me. Is this supposed to boost my self-esteem? Because it doesn't. The implication is that I'm not operating at full speed and needed some outside source of power.

IN THE COMMENTS: Jacob said:
The Onion: Women Now Empowered By Everything A Woman Does
Chris Althouse Cohen said:
Mom: Perhaps there's some quote that you and I just talked about on the phone that might relate in a humorous way to this blog post.
Yes, it's from Samuel Johnson: "Sir, a woman's preaching is like a dog's walking on his hind legs. It is not done well; but you are surprised to find it done at all."

28 comments:

Automatic_Wing said...

Awesome. Spam from the Lifetime and Oxygen networks can't be far behind.

bagoh20 said...

Poor powerless creatures, but cute as a button they are, especially when they're doing that empowering stuff.

bagoh20 said...

I'd like that Holly Hunter to empower herself all over me.

rhhardin said...

It's probably measured in jewels per year.

Cedarford said...

It appears to be part of the language of identity politics, and it seems to allow liberals a change to indulge their nobility by interactions with "powerless classes" - where trivial actions take on a lauditory glow of moral righteousness if they somehow "empower" - benefit - a member of an oppressed class.

And professional victimhood groups like feminists just eat the word up.

Today, I apparantly "empowered" a black businesswoman by buying a BBQ chicken sandwich from her mobile cart. If it had been a chicken salad rollwrap bought from the adjacent stall a white guy had, it wouldn't have been an empowering act, and presumably, if I was liberal, I wouldn't have felt the warm glow.

traditionalguy said...

TNT also has a series called The Closer on before these two being promoting. I watched it once because the main character is the same name as my wife's maiden name, and it turned out that there were amazing personality similarities. The show is one of a very few to ever show an educated southern female's personality correctly. So that show did empower me to watch it again. Alas, my wife only enjoys the PBS shows and romantic movies, so she closes out TV drama series.

David said...

Ann, not for nothing but, I think technically eating a sandwich does empower you.

BJK said...

IT'S A TARP!!!


I can't be the only one to think that Ann is giving the e-mailer / PR for WB exactly what they were hoping for, can I?

She's blogging about the TNT lineup, without getting paid to run a banner ad. If anyone is being empowered, it's the marketing department. One quicky form letter to their mailing list of female bloggers and....free plug.

Jason (the commenter) said...

Hi Ann,

Oh, they started out in the worst way possible!

Congrats

Pat on head.

on a great blog it’s very

Make sure to use simple words like "great" and "very" because you are talking to woman.

informative

You are smart.

and empowering.

My show is about a powerful woman and I want you to identify with the character, so I call you words you think describe yourself.

I am part of Warner Bros PR

Hide the word "Brothers" as best you can!

and I am reaching to leading blogs like yours in hopes of gaining your support for a some really powerful and empowering new series

Reaching out to you for support, like the child or sick family member you are currently, or have in the past, taken care of.

on our sister company’s network TNT.

Sister!

Doesn't "Ann" want to support Warner Bros "sister" company?

Ken said...

The titular character in Saving Grace screws indiscriminately, drinks to unconsciousness weekly, and non uncommonly shoots people dead.

All of that is highly empowering.

Cabbage said...

If it had been a chicken salad rollwrap . . . I wouldn't have felt the warm glow.

Sounds like good barbecue.

Clint said...

You fell for it :/

Jacob said...

The Onion: Women Now Empowered By Everything A Woman Does

David said...

Following up on a previous post...

[telegraph.co.uk]

RLB_IV said...

Althouse eating an egg salad sandwich was truly empowering.

So much so that the very act of bravery was noticed by the TNT marketing department.

Oh, the price of fame.

Unknown said...

They're also paying for (I assume they're paying for) radio personalities to talk up Hawthorne. The first time it seems kind of natural, then it's just BS.

rhhardin said...

A medical drama is right up women's alley.

Chris Althouse Cohen said...

Mom: Perhaps there's some quote that you and I just talked about on the phone that might relate in a humorous way to this blog post.

Sprezzatura said...

This PR person appears to have fallen into a hideous line of work.

My guess is that they would like some empowerment so that they could stop sending spam. Cold calling (or emailing) bloggers about TV shows must really suck. What other lame tasks does this poor soul have to do for the rest of the day, after the spamming is done?

I think they deserve our sympathy. They may be guilty of a little projection as they assume everyone, like themselves, desperately needs empowerment. And, they may have tried their best to think of some cliches and buzzwords to connect w/ their target demo because they're to dumb/incompetent to do otherwise.

One thing is for sure, I'm confident that a lot of folks would not envy their lame job.

Issob Morocco said...

Krazy Jim's Quad w/american, grilled onion, fried egg on a kaiser is empowerment.

rhhardin said...

Daily bike commute past a field with newly rolled hay, overlooked on the women's empowerment channel.

Chase said...

3 meaningless words:


- empowerment


- closure


- coalition (usually pronounced "co-uh-li-shunnnn")


I can never get a clean definition from anyone I ask.

And dictionaries are worthless on these words when it comes to how they are actually used today.

Sprezzatura said...

BTW, everybody must appreciate the irony of this empowerment comment coinciding w/ Althouse's unempowering Blogger experience.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Cold calling (or emailing) bloggers about TV shows must really suck. What other lame tasks does this poor soul have to do for the rest of the day, after the spamming is done?

Hopefully she gets to play World of Warcraf, when the bosses aren't looking, and beat the crap out of a Night Elf Priest (/wink at Hoosier). Now THAT is empowering.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Also informative and empowering, not to mention a lot of fun during long seminars.

Bullshit Bingo

B. Cook said...

A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man.

Sprezzatura said...

Althouse can be "smart, and savy, and sophisticated as [she] deal[s] with the market."

via bloggingheads

But, she's not "laughing" and moving on when confronted w/ marketing attempts today.

BTW, Douglas was a total bore, especially toward the end.

kellymo said...

rhhardin, that was really lovely.