U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., is launching a Spanish-language Web campaign in California called Tu Voz, Tu Voto (Your Voice, Your Vote), a serial melodrama that features the fictional Ortiz family
who end up supporting Obama in advance of the state's Feb. 5 primary. The series is running on votehope2008.org, and on the Vote Hope YouTube channel, along with public service announcements featuring
celebrities, including hip-hop artist Common, who is also pitching Ford's Lincoln brand.
The mini-novellas target the fact that a large percentage of Hispanics are not registered
to vote or don't vote regularly. The short bilingual films are inspired by the Latin American telenovelas, à la "Ugly Betty."
--Karl Greenberg
