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Friday 9 March 2018

Obama on Netflix

From the BBC we have exciting news of a new type of entertainment.

Former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle are in talks to produce shows for Netflix, according to the New York Times.

The couple would make exclusive content for the US streaming site focused on uplifting stories, the paper suggested.

If confirmed, the deal would give a global platform for the Obamas, bypassing mainstream US media such as Fox News.

Eric Schultz, a senior adviser to the former president, did not confirm the plans but said they would make sense.

"President and Mrs Obama have always believed in the power of storytelling to inspire," he told the paper.

"Throughout their lives, they have lifted up stories of people whose efforts to make a difference are quietly changing the world for the better. As they consider their future personal plans, they continue to explore new ways to help others tell and share their stories."


It isn't easy to plumb the deeper rationale behind this, but no doubt there is a more interesting story which could be told. What it does remind us of is the enormous role emotion plays in the whole political process. 

Obama was never an inspiring speaker and neither was he convincing, but he obviously stirred the emotions of millions of susceptible voters. Maybe something is being sold here, something bigger than Obama's retirement ambitions. 

5 comments:

Bill Sticker said...

That does it. Netflix Canada has just been ditched. It's been going downhill for the last two years. Now I've got Amazon Prime Netflix is rarely watched because there's so little worth the fee.

Demetrius said...

He gave the impression of being a nice chap. Except that nice chaps don't get to be President.

Scrobs. said...

I only vaguely know anything about Netflix.

As the only live TV we've watched since October last year is the 6 Nations, I wonder what all the fuss is about!

For us, a couple of pounds on a second-hand DVD on Amazon, is perfectly fine entertainment. The ' bbc news' can go hang too!

I wouldn't want to watch anything O'Bama does anyway...

James Higham said...

Saw this. Just sighed and moved on.

A K Haart said...

Bill - interesting. We have Amazon Prime and I've occasionally wondered if Netflix is better. We use it mainly to keep the grandkids entertained.

Demetrius - he was good at creating impressions.

Scrobs - we don't watch much live TV either. A film every now and then but most of those we give up on.

James - depressing isn't it?