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Obama speechwriter gone wild—and caught on Facebook

Have you seen the embarrassing photo of Barack Obama’s 27-year-old speechwriter, Jon Favreau, and a cardboard cutout of secretary of state-designate Hillary Clinton?

It was snapped at a recent party, according to The Washington Post. The photo appeared on Facebook before Favreau, chief of speechwriters for the incoming administration, removed all photos of himself on social networks (except for one profile shot).

Favreau has reportedly apologized for the picture and the Clinton camp seems good humored about the incident.

“Senator Clinton is pleased to learn of Jon's obvious interest in the State Department, and is currently reviewing his application,” Clinton senior adviser Philippe Reines told The Post in an e-mail.

From where I sit, this picture reveals five important truths.

1. Speechwriters should remain in the shadows. Bush speechwriters Michael Gerson and Matt Scully started a downward spiral when they published memoirs and tell-alls, and hit the talk show circuit. That spiral ends here, with a picture of the incoming president’s star speechwriter fondling a cardboard cut out of Hillary Clinton.

2. No one fondles Hillary Clinton, cardboard or otherwise, and gets away with it—just wait.

3. If this picture emerged before the election, Favreau would be making sandwiches at Subway right now.

4. If you’re not careful, Facebook (or MySpace or any number of social networks) will get you in trouble—get used to it. In a flash of immaturity you pose for a suggestive picture. On Monday, your boss and everyone else are e-mailing it around the office. This will happen more frequently as we continue putting our lives on the Web.

5. You can take the speechwriter out of a 27-year-old, but you can’t take the 27-year-old out of the speechwriter.

Comments (26)

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John Cowan:

Salon.com has an item on this. One comment from a selection of Salon staffers: "Try to imagine a photo of a top female speechwriter for the female president-elect grabbing the crotch of a cardboard cutout of the male politician whom her boss had vanquished in the primary."

http://www.salon.com/mwt/broadsheet/feature/2008/12/10/jon_favreau/

Matt:

Nothing good ever came of a life-size cardboard cutout. Having one around is asking for trouble.

Anonymous:

So what? The guy is young and while a great speechwriter, not a very image-savvy communicator. His lesson out of this - protect your image and brand, even if you are the front person.

Tim:

Sarah,

It is possible to discuss more than one issue at a time. Yes, the Democrat governor and "former" political ally of the president elect is in trouble over graft. Presumably, Obama's senior advisor Axlerod was wrong when he said last month that Blago and Obama spoke about Obama's successor in the senate. As of yesterday, that never happened.

But on this matter, yes indeed, if the speechwriter for the president elect does not have the good judgment, and I emphasize that judgment is the issue here, then his competency at that level on the communications team needs to be questioned. Are we going to have to face charges of "sore loser" every time someone points out a Democrat misstep in the next four years?

CHAS:

YIKES!

Sarah:

Hey Jeff. Do I detect just a little bit of a sore loser in your comments?

People, if this is your idea of a PR faux pas, then your priorities are askew, or you haven't been reading the news. I think the selling of the U.S. Senate seat from Illinois is just a tad more serious than some drunken fooling around.

If Clinton can't take that joke, she has no business being in public life.


Jay:

Sorry, not buying the "boys will be boys" attitude here.

If he were a Republican, members of the NOW would be pouring gasoline over their heads and immolating themselves in protest.

In any event, he ought to resign or be fired just for the sheer idiocy of his behavior -- frankly, as an allegedly professional communicator he should have known better, and if he didn't, well someone that stupid and politically tone deaf shouldn't be writing speeches for the president.

Jeff:

While the picture is boorish, I don't think it is relevant in assessing the man's skills...nor necessarily indicative of his real beliefs. It is probably just a serious flash of alcohol induced immaturity. I do believe that if this had been McCain's speechwriter, he would have been verbally flogged into resignment for sexist and misogynistic behavior. Media spin would have been relentlessly ruthless with stabbing attempts to accuse institutional sexism of the non-Obama party. The barn in your backyard never smells as bad as your neighbor's barn...especially when you delirously hate your neighbor.

Jeff:

While the picture is boorish, I don't think it is relevant in assessing the man's skills...nor necessarily indicative of his real beliefs. It is probably just a serious flash of alcohol induced immaturity. I do believe that if this had been McCain's speechwriter, he would have been verbally flogged into resignment for sexist and misogynistic behavior. Media spin would have been relentlessly ruthless with stabbing attempts to accuse institutional sexism of the non-Obama party. The barn in your backyard never smells as bad as your neighbor's barn...especially when you delirously hate your neighbor.

Brian Olson:

There's an old saying in broadcasting.."Assume the mike is always on."

In today's Web 2.0 world, we can also add "Assume everyone has a camera and a FaceBook Account."

We're all live, all the time.

Susan Doolittle:

I don't think this is too big a deal, and it appears the Clinton camp is responding with class and humor.

While this does point out that one should be careful of what pictures they're in and what gets posted to social networks, I'm also relieved that all pictures taken of me at that age are on film, because I was young and crazy long before digital cameras. We should all be so lucky!

Susan:

Fresh talent? Is that a Freudian slip?

Anonymous:

You're absolutley right, Wendy. What this world needs now more than ever is to lower its standards. Mediocrity is cool.

It's only a big deal to the generations not used to sharing this kind of information anyway. I think we'll see a big shift when the kids that have grown up with social networks and are used to having their lives up on the net start entering the work force (they're starting to already). They don't think it's a big deal. It's not a few of them, it's a whole generation. The rest of us are just going to need to learn to live with it. If a company is going to screen someone based on their Facebook photos, there will absolutely be a company who will not. I think these are the companies that are currently embracing all things social media rather than trying to keep it at bay. And they'll be the ones way ahead of the rest, and with all the fresh talent working for them.

Maybe Facebook photos will be the new "Nannygate" of government appointments.

I'm gonna treat this post like an USWeekly article:

Favreau wears that same unironic sweater/ collared-shirt-with-rolled-up-sleeves combo in every picture taken of him. http://www.newsweek.com/id/84756 AP reports that Jake Gyllenhaal has read the script and is NOT interested.

Michael Sebastian:

Pat, Favreau is the one on the left fondling Hillary Clinton. Sorry I didn't indicate that. Otherwise, your beef is with The Washington Post, where this story originated. In the original story none of the facts you require were spelled out.

The Clinton camp's response is hilarious! Maybe we're all finally getting a sense of humor.

I'm just glad Favreau didn't try to say he wasn't actually going for her ... you know. It would have sounded way too much like previous defenses that I'm sure Hillary has personally had her fill of.

Anonymous:

I don't think it's a big deal. However, by the time you are 27 and writing speeches for a presidential candidate or president-elect, especially today, you should have a better sense of how your image can and will be used. Oh well, I guess boys will be boys?
Susan

Tim:

Javier,

Let me read between the lines for you. That quote from Hillary's office to Jon essentially says, "You're toast." The only way this guy can salvage himself right now is if Obama really, really likes him a lot and is willing to ruffle some feathers with his new Secretary of State. I agree with one Mr. "James Carville" on this thread.

Pat Moreira:

The article lacks some key facts: When was the photo taken? On whose Facebook page did it appear? Which guy is Favreau anyway? If you want to be an authority on media, at least get the basics of reporting right.

James Carville:

"There's nothing embarrassing about this photo."

You should have signed yourself "Clearly Clueless about PR."

John Cowan:

"Speechwriters should remain in the shadows. Bush speechwriters Michael Gerson and Matt Scully started a downward spiral when they published memoirs and tell-alls, and hit the talk show circuit."

On the other hand, Peggy Noonan did pretty good for herself after What I Saw at the Revolution, her account of writing speeches for Reagan. She was criticized somewhat at the time, but seems to have survived--and the lack of embarrassing photos is probably a good thing. She may be the lone exception, which is regrettable, given the insipidness (insipidity?) of her Wall Street Journal column.

This was a big mistake for Favreau, and he'll be lucky to keep his job. Anything that draws unfavorable attention to your speaker is something to be avoided.

Javier:

There's nothing embarrassing about this photo. What's embarrassing is how uptight you are about other people having fun and enjoying life. Maybe if someone fondled YOU for a change, you'd lighten up. Get a life, dude.

Mike:

I think that for somebody applying for a government/high level position in a company, or, well, the government, should definitely monitor their facebook, myspace, etc.

The picture, while embarrassing because of what Favereau does, is still rather innocent in comparison to some of the scandalous photos that are out there. Everyone, regardless of job position, age, race, from time to time gets a little nuts. And then sometimes, somebody snaps a picture, or takes a video. Remember when W gave a rolling camera the bird? Hilarious. You can't help but chuckle because it reminds everyone, he really is just like us.

I would like to see this blow over. Have a sense of humor and laugh about it. It's a funny picture and I'm sure more than just some of us have done something similar in our time.
Is it just me or wouldn't it be amusing if the Jon Favereau of Swingers fame wrote a speech or two for Obama?

You're so money, America. So money and you don't even know it.

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