Obama in China

Semi-O wakes from its slumber to post this fascinating story on Obamania in China:


Watch CBS News Videos Online

Sherpard Fairey on Obama art

New York magazine writes about Fairey's new book.

The Weekly Rader Grades Obama's Speech to the U.N.

Click on me to visit The Weekly Rader's evaluation of Mr. Obama's speech.

Obama Beer

Obama Beer

After about a month hiatus, SemiO is back with a good, solid summer post.

Obama beer!

Brewed here in the Bay Area by Half Moon Bay, the Mavericks Obama Ale is only $3.75 per bottle.

We're a bit surprised that a "maverick" beer represents the president in a coat and tie on its label. Seems a more relaxed, even tipsy, Obama might be more appropriate.

Feel free to post your own suggestions for a new Obama beer label. Obama on a Clydesdale? A big beer can dropping on John McCain?

On Obama reading mainstream magazines

Another note showing that the president reads journalism as a source of information for policy decisions. One of the basic functions of journalism is to gather information, make sense of it, and present it to the reader.  Day-to-day that's what the majority of journalists do.

New York Times on Obama image

Check it out here. 

Obama Tours San Francisco

While President Obama was speaking to the nation about closing Guantanamo, he was also touring San Francisco via cable cars and the back of conversion vans.

He's a versatile guy, that Obama . . .

Okay, so granted, the president may actually be able to inhabit many spheres at once, but even he is subject to the laws of physics. If you're wondering how he can be in two places at once, it may be obvious now that the other Obama--the one speaking to reporters in D.C.--is made entirely of wax. The real one was here in San Francisco getting his groove on in the Haight.

He was a little hung over Tuesday morning (above), but his handlers took pretty good care of him.

In truth, the wax Obama was the one here in the Bay Area. It is part of a large scale wax figure exhibit in which the wax Obama kicks the wax Barry Bond's ass. Rumor has it both will be dressed up as lucha libres and on display in front of AT&T Park.

Obama as Spock?

See John Dickerson's take on Obama's idea of empathy....

Last Sunday's cover of The New York Times Magazine featured a contemplative image of President Obama. We know he is deep in thought because of his posture.

To indicate thought, one must have some part of the hand pressed against the face, or, preferably the head. Think of Rodin's The Thinker.

Think also of Walter Benjamin. No one's author photos are more about thought than his. In fact, in one of the photos, he seems to be in pain he's thinking so hard.












So, the semiotics of this cover place Obama in the line of people who have been known to be driven more by thought than anger, more by reflection than reaction. The Benjamin photo on the right makes him look like he's debating about which wedge of cheese to put on his cracker, whereas the image of Obama creates an aura of deep thought. It takes his entire left hand to hold up his head there are so many ideas in there.

What does this mean? Well, it may tell us more about Obama than the cover itself. That is, it tells us what we think about Obama. We replicate what we already believe.

I believe I like this cover. It wavers between illustration and photorealism. Its color palette is almost washed out, and that flatness contrasts against the depth of Obama's visage. The effect is essentially positive.

Ultimately, this cover evokes a dignified, reflective, intelligent president, who may or may not be thinking about his post move.

Is There Ever Enough Cowbell?

Racialicious on the Chia Obama

I hadn't seen this, but Racilicious breaks it down.

Jon Stewart and the Hope Poster

Jon Stewart uses a bit of Barack Obama symbolism in his take on the right's tyranny watch.

The HBO President

Politico and New York magazine's excellent Daily Intel have rundowns of Barack Obama and his family's television habits. 

His love for The Wire and television sports is already well-known--he mentioned The Wire as his favorite show a few times on the campaign trail, and he was featured on ESPN on a Barackatology segment, where he picked the NCAA tournament. (For the record, he picked a lot of chalk, and of course, he ended up picking the champion, North Carolina.)

Two shows are signaled out by the two articles: Entourage and Gossip Girl. For the uninitiated, Entourage is about a movie star who bring three of his friends, one of them himself a former star, to California with him as he tries to make it big. The show is based loosely on Mark Wahlberg's life and the agent is based on Ari Emanuel, the brother of Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel. 

But the familial relationship is not why Obama watches the show--like everyone else, it has to be the fantasy aspect of an existence lived by a different set of rules and standards. Though the show has legitimate drama and tension, the underlying message to me is the fantasy of American men living in a world of work and play without female guidance or less sinisterly, the positive but complicated nature of male friendship. Of course, it's about the glamour of Hollywood too.

There might be some parallels between life in the White House, though it's not exclusively a male-oriented world, and gritty details of running government seems essentially less romantic. 

Gossip Girl is at its essence about class, and the difficulties class relationships cause among a relatively undifferentiated group of privileged prep school students. And it's about the essential seriousness of high school, and of course, adults watching it see the parallels between it and their own complicated lives, which remind them of high school. 

There might be some parallels between life in the White House, though it's not exclusively a male-oriented world, and gritty details of running government seems essentially less romantic. The fact that Obama loves Entourage is just another piece of evidence that confirms his essential masculinity. Combine that with at least a reference to Gossip Girl, also shows his desire to keep up with pop culture. 

Though their popularity exclude them from true cult status, the fervent nature of followers of Gossip Girl--New York spends many column inches each week confirming its authenticity--and Entourage point to popular culture watchers--count our president among them--that at least knowing about the shows is crucial. 

--J.S.

The Topps Trading Cards

Last week, I purchased my first pack of the "Inaugural Edition President Obama" Topps trading cards. It was a big day. Within five minutes I had purchased both a gigantic burrito and a slim but exciting sleeve of Obama Topps.

At $2.00 for 6 cards and a sticker, it was no great deal--my burrito was only a dollar more--but the cards have zero fat grams and are more friendly to animals.

I had high hopes for the cards.

I imagined a photo of Obama dunking over Dick Cheney; perhaps one of him making a long downfield pass to Joe Biden; I was especially looking forward to the one of Obama and Hillary doing the high-five after that wicked alley-oop ESPN keeps running on the highlight reels.

Instead, I got cards in which there were a lot of ties.

A red tie, a blue tie, more red ties. And blazers. Who puts a guy wearing a tie and a blazer on a trading card? Instead of calling these "trading cards," I propose Topps change the name to "trading favors cards," since that's what most of my scenes seem to be about.

There appear to be 90 different cards in all and 18 stickers. That seems hard to believe. Are there really 90 different images of Mr. Obama talking to other people? Topps gets points for the attempt to make "Pioneer at Harvard Law" edgy with the black and white photo of Obama in the turtleneck and leather jacket. But, those points get taken away by the half-witted "Cool Running Mates" tag.

My goal is not simply to collect all 90 cards but to rank the lamest of 90. Sure, sure, I'll also be happy to write about the "best" Obama cards, but unless Topps includes images from SemiObama, I'm not convinced we're going to learn much.

My nomination for the lamest card from this set is the "Ready for Prime Time" action shot of President Obama and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Could anything be less actiony than two heads of state in suits and ties strolling through an English garden?

---D.R.

More on Obama as Icon

Off an on throughout era Obama, we've been talking about Barack Obama as an icon. As we've said here and elsewhere, Obama's ubiquitous image and the places that image appears, makes him more than a celebrity. His visage--and the fact that we can use "visage" rather than face--connotes reverence, hope, and transformation.

Take a look at the objects below: coins, plates--even stained glass. Notice how Obama's face has replaced the traditional icon.















































































In addition to coins and plates and stained glass, there are even images of Obama as an actual icon (see above).

What this means is that people are locating in Obama's image the emotional and psychological qualities normally reserved for religious figures like saints. To be sure, this helped him win the election. But, the downside is that we have high expectations of saints--even higher for deities. What happens when Mr. Obama cannot answer prayers?

---D.R.

Roundup on Obama in Europe

The Guardian's Jonathan Freedland on Obama's first press conference in Europe as president.

The New York Times on the symbolic nature of Obama's trip to Europe seen through 10 Downing Street.

Christi Parsons on the wordplay involved with British/American relations.

A short piece on why the president won't weigh in on European football, er, soccer, er, football.

The Los Angeles Times on Obama's promise to listen and lead.

The Wall Street Journal on the basic challenges that Obama will face with Europe.

The Telegraph's (London) Philip Sherwell on the problems that Obama might face in Europe.

More from us soon!

More Obama and Basketball

I think this says more about the media than it does about Barack Obama, but yet another prediction has come from our president: Lakers v. Cavs in the NBA final. 

CJR analyzes the Professor Obama meme

and finds it derogatory.

What a President Does

President Obama is the leader of the United States. That much is certain, despite the protestations of some.

But what is less clear is what it means to be president. Or in this case, to lead.

Looking at the Oxford English Dictionary's definitions (subscription required) for lead is somewhat instructive. The first definition is "To bring or take (a person or animal) to a place" is the most direct and literal/physical meaning. 

The second definition is the one I find most intriguing--"to accompany and show the way to: to conduct, guide, esp. to direct or guide by going on in advance; to cause to follow in one's path." 

This one and the fifth are the most relevant to the actions of a president outside of war (which is covered in the fourth definition). The fifth reads:  "To guide with reference to action or opinion; to bring by persuasion or counsel to or into a condition; to conduct by argument or representation to a conclusion; to induce to do something."

Looking at the Oxford almost always surprises me, because it often reveals telling subtleties of language. In this case, the definition that focuses on accompaniment and showing--that leading is as much an act of being as it is showing. It's clear that part of Obama's mission is convince the country that improvement is on the way both through direct persuasion*, as highlighted in the fifth definition,  and through his calmness. 

In other words, leading is more than decision and speech making; it is indirect and subtle.

--J.S.

*This whole section focuses on the things the Obama administration is doing and has done.

Oba-Mart

Last week, I was in the Oakland Wal-Mart and came across a most unlikely sight--an entire display of framed photos of Barack Obama. As some scholars have noted, Wal-Mart has become the one place in America where people of all races and classes interact rather seamlessly, leading to the compelling argument that the large box store has become America's new commons.

This is certainly the case in Oakland, where a staggering cross-section of the Bay Area's population comes for iPods, diapers, Oakland Raiders gear, and huge packages of toilet paper. So, it should not have come as such a surprise that this wall of Obama images fronted the main isle from the entrance of the store to the electronics.

After all, Wal-Mart markets itself as a patriotic place. It appeals to blue-collar, traditional family values, and these images of Obama position him in that light. Obama not for the edgy indy crowd (a la Shephard Faiery) but mainstream Obama, mass-market Obama, populist Obama, non-threatening Obama, American Obama.

Indeed, as I was standing in the aisle, taking these photographs, a woman stopped on her way out to scold me: "That's cheating," she said. "You can't just take pictures. You have to buy them. I'm sure he can use the money." We joked about this for a while and chatted on our way out of the store, when something very interesting happened.

Both of us were carrying small bags--we had made minor purchases in the electronics department--however, when we approached the security guard at the exit she got stopped, while I walked on through with no questions whatsoever. Why did she have her bag and receipt checked? Well, she was African American, and I am not; so perhaps that provides an answer.

During the campaign, it was not uncommon to hear complaints that if Obama got elected "blacks" would "take over" or "think they would be entitled to everything." At this Wal-Mart, in Oakland, that proved not to be the case.

The most troubling detail of all? The security guard was African American.

---D.R.