Nader Hires Ventura's Ad Guru
July 12 -- Ralph Nader and Gov. Jesse Ventura may not have a lot in common, but now they share an important campaign asset: the same advertising guru.
Nader, the Green Party’s presidential candidate, announced at a press conference in Washington today that he will be working with William Hillsman, the ad man who was a key player in Ventura’s stunning Minnestoa gubernatorial upset in 1998.
“Bill Hillsman has energized the electorate for Jesse Ventura and Paul Wellstone,” Nader told reporters at the National Press Club, adding that Hillsman and his ad firm, North Woods Advertising, are “creative communicators who help bring underdog candidates andcauses to victory.”
Hillsman already produced the introductory video of Nader shown at the Green Party convention in Denver last month, and said he would remind voters of the famed consumer advocate’s populist positions.
“Not all consumers are voters, but all voters are consumers,” said Hillsman.
Nader and Hillsman said they would pursue a strategy of mixing television, radio, and print ads, and would try to use the Web to attract interest as well.
In particular, Hillsman said he would target college campuses as part of an effort to get Nader’s message out to young voters.
“We have a secret plan to make Ralph the sixth member of 'N Sync,” joked Hillsman.
The Underdogs’ Ad ManHillsman is best known for his 1998 work for Ventura, which included an ad portraying Ventura, a former professional wrestler, as an action figure battling the “Evil Special Interest Man.”
However, Hillman’s work with Minnesota Sen. Paul Wellstone may be a better comparison for what he has to do with the more serious-minded Nader.
In 1990, Hillsman created a series of ads for Wellstone, then a little-known college professor, and helped him unseat the Republican incumbent, Rudy Boschwitz, in a major upset.
One of Wellstone’s ads was a takeoff of the film Roger & Me and depicted Boschwitz as unwilling to confront serious issues.
Popular Reads
ABC News Live