Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad?

Reflecting on last night's bad results it strikes me just how poor and out-dated Labour's presentational skills are compared to the Tories. What's the reason for this?

A few examples are the following:

  • Party election broadcasts for Labour look like the same ones used in the 1990's - the Tories' ones look clean, bright and uplifting. Ours (particularly in Scotland) focus on the negatives of rival parties rather than the positives of Labour.
  • The tools used by canvassers in local areas are poor. The Tories have large placards with clear, catchy messages on and manage to come up with thoughtful stunts like those 'Bottler Brown' costumes. What do we have? Just a few little signs with 'Labour' written on them.
  • Look at this photo on ConHome at 3.45pm yesterday - the Tories strategists planning everything on their multiple laptops with the Labour strategists still using pen and paper.
  • Even our conferences look dated - with the same kind of staging and set-up used in 1996.
  • The blogosphere (the political tool of the 21st century) - Tory sites like ConHome and Iain Dale dominating. All use a wide range of modern features, all look modern and bright, all have high traffic figures. I know ConHome gets funding for this, but how can we go about getting similar funding? Why is our half of the blogosphere so poor?
  • Labour at the moment is useless at utilising the internet - even things like WebCameron, whilst tacky - still make the Tories look more modern and more in touch than we do.
  • Our politicians. I'm sorry to say that Gordon Brown this morning looked smug and came across as irritating (as a lot of Labour ministers tend to do). Cameron strolled around the country as though he's the Prime Minister - and people now feel that he's a PM in waiting.
To be honest, our presentation is appallingly bad. It never used to be like this. In the 1990's we looked the modern, dynamic party utilising the new technology of the day. Today we just look old-fashioned and out of touch.

I don't know whether this is down to a lack of money, lack of resources or lack of ideas but something needs to be done about it. Although unfortunately I can't see that happening until it's too late and we're out of power.



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Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#1)

Is it because the centre-left techies tend to be Lib Dems?

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#5)

I can't say that the LibDems are "centre left".

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#11)

I didn't say that either.

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#2)

It's because anyone with modern skills votes Conservative or LibDem.

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#3)

Sorry to swear, but can't you just piss off?

You have nothing to offer this site other than sarcastic comments which aren't remotely funny.

If you have something intelligent or constructive to say then say it. Otherwise, clear off.

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#4)

Labour were slow to latch on to IT technology, webs blogs, and the citizen journalist, etc, but I think we are catching up. It may be complacency or more likely underestimating the Tory Party machine, which has a virtually open cheque book, unlike us heavily in debt and always strapped for cash. Its money worries that got us into this awful mess in the first place with loans and cash for honours smears. Brown talks about listening and renewing the Party but I have yet to see any evidence of it, even after these disastrous results, the question is will he act? What and where are the changes? People will be expecting some shift in change after the Bank Holiday.  

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#6)

we're tired is the short answer. and we lie.

and our internal institutions don't work. we don't have new things to say because we don't have new ideas. our policy making process is a farce that serves the interests of no 10 rather than the party. i worked in it for five years. i know.

we also speak like we bureacrats, like we're managers. the language we use is just alien to normal people. we have very few spokespeople who can just sit down in a studio and have a conversation.

our people sound evasive. why? because that's the way they've been schooled. they are shit scared of not sticking to the line when instead they should be frightened of not telling the truth.

our default reaction to any question or issue or problem should not be to think 'how can we get out of this one?' or 'what answer do we think is politically expedient' but to just tell the truth. should be simple really, but there always seem to be some clever spad chaps who work way too hard on some handling strategy or other.

okay, some bull points for ministers: stop trying to be too clever. stop calculating. stop lying. if you fuck up, admit it (it's important) and move on. be a bit daring, a bit colourful - be yourselves, show us a bit of leg. people like a bit of character. and please, dear god, start talking like the people you're trying to persuade to vote for you.

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#8)

Well said.

The ministers that came on TV to discuss the results gave dire excuses.

Some of them (John Denham, Geoff Hoon) couldn't even admit that the results were actually bad.

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#15)

"we also speak like we bureacrats, like we're managers. "

I would agree with the first part but not the second.

I don't think our ministers act like managers at all.  They come across as arrogant, lacking common sense and have an inability to really listen. 

They compound any problems that come up by the way in which they respond and have a complete inability either to be critical of themselves or focus on the main business of their departments (instead being more interested in the next initiative that will just blow up a year down the track).

They appear as robots, completely out of touch with their own true selves and as a result come over as false.  Look no further than our own PM who we would have had confidence in if he would have remained true to his hard working miserable scotsman self but instead paints on a false smile and starts to bear an uncanny resemblance to Richard Nixon. 

As a result they lack credibility, honesty and charisma (note charisma not being that they look good but that they are true to themselves, including their faults).  These are fundamental leadership traits.  

In addition, because they have never managed anything of any consequence at the delivery level, they have a complete inability to trust front line services.  Instead they try and micromanage front line managers using less competant civil servants who have no accountability for the cock-ups they make.  The result is poorer performance that is then blamed on the front-line, followed by threats of privatisation, but again reinforces the view of arrogance and incompetance further up.

In summary.  It is because the last 30 years of management development between the workforce (in both the public and private sector) has passed by this bunch of career politicians that we are in the biggest mess since 1983.

It almost looks as well as if the PM does not seem to be able to look at his MPs, understand their psycological make up to get them to work as a team.  Instead it looks like there are a load of particularly introverted characters (questioners) such as himself, Ed Balls, Yvette Cooper (Yvette being a perfect example of arrogance meeting a leadership type on Newsnight over 10p) etc. running things, together with a bunch of carers (Hazel Blears types).  There seem to be no leader types to add some common sense and ability to maintain perspective and few social types that can get messages across (David Milliband would fit but he is not visable enough).  I hate to say this but the balance of the tories front bench as a team looks better.

Still give you some fun to drop each minister into their respective box next time you see them on the television and see whether they are suited.


Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#7)

a very apposite and accurate comment above.

As for telling us to "piss off", well I have not used any bad language here.. and if you resort to it it's a sure sign you are losing...

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#9)

I don't think presentation is the real problem.  To be honest, I hate Conservative Home and find Ian Dale's site as dull as ditchwater.  Party Election broadcasts are ALL pretty dire.

The problem is that our people are going on telly not knowing what to say (or - here's where I agree with you - how to say it).  There wasn't a message today, but there so easily could have been.  "We're listening" is pretty thin.  We need to say "we've had a really bad set of results.  We know why.  In the next period of the government we are going to do X, Y & Z and here are the reasons why these policies are the right ones." 

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#10)

Just saw Ruth Kelly on newsnight.  All day the government line has been 'world economic crisis', people are anxious about the economy.

And at the same time they have the cheek to say they are listening.  

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#13)

I mean 'World Economic Crisis' is what GORDON BROWN is thinking about, sure, and quite right.  But to insist that that what the man and woman on the street is fretting over is to invite an electoral slap.

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#12)

I think the finanical state of the party doesn't help - we can't bring in the same professionals as the Tories.

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#14)

I listened to Ruth Kelly (whom I like as a person) and thought she was dreadful. Same old platitudes.

If she wanted to give a real message, it surely should have been:
we got several things wron, we know what they are and we'll change them. Sorry. And btw the economic situation does not help.

To blame the economic situation on the 10p tax debacle - people would not have noticed it  a year ago - says it all.

No change planned. Full steam ahead. There are no icebergs ahead Captain.The good ship Titanic is unsinkable.

Pure lunacy.

If this was the Conservative Party , the men in gray suits would be calling today and Brown would be gone by next week. (see the jettisoning of Ian Duncan Smith - he was useless  and never fought a GE cos he would have lost even bigger style).

Brown has no empathy with people and judging by Ruth Kelly his Ministers have none either.

For the sake of democracy you need a change of Leader. But it is not going to happen. Based on these results - which will NOT neccessarly translate into GE results - the Conservatives would have a majority over Labour of 190 seats. That is not good for democracy.

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#16)

That is actually great for democracy - we've had a solialist dictatorship for 10+ years now and at last the British people have woken up.
BTW please don't get rid of Brown - he's wonderful - even better than Foot

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#22)

"We've had a socialist dictatorship for 10+ years" - What planet do you people come from?!

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#17)

"Bill Quango MP" came over to my blog and in a comment <a href="http://chrispaul-labouroflove.blogspot.com/2008/05/tory-trimuphalism-they-just-dont-get-i t.html">on this post</a> he/she/it pointed me here for which I am grateful. This is interesting
 
The Labour Party do need to find some energy from somewhere it's true. But better presentation in terms of bells and whistles is not really the answer. The medium WAS the message. But bells and whistles is NOT our message for our core. And with the urban intellectuals trying to empathise with that core we need to get them understanding the simple things in life.
 
You know: Tories are greedy graspers, Lib Dems are fibbers with no grounding in politics. 
 
Better communication in terms of listening and getting both the policy and the language right is what is needed.
 
Cameron ONLY has presentation plus our weaker supporters' and swingers itchy feet. He really cannot reasonably claim that anyone has switched because of his policies. There are none. Cam has no clothes.
 
One of my old friends' dad used to ask: "Are you winning more than you're losing?" which is a good question to be asking our people. And if they don't realise that they are then spell it out.
 
Not spin. Just straight talk. 
 
And we need to stop hiding the step changes of the stealth re-distribution under a bushel.
 
And admit that however serious the instabilities in the world the Iraq War was not the right answer to any sensible question. 

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#18)

"Bill Quango MP" came over to my blog and in a comment <a href="http://chrispaul-labouroflove.blogspot.com/2008/05/tory-trimuphalism-they-just-dont-get-i t.html">on this post</a> he/she/it pointed me here for which I am grateful. This is interesting
 
The Labour Party do need to find some energy from somewhere it's true. But better presentation in terms of bells and whistles is not really the answer. The medium WAS the message. But bells and whistles is NOT our message for our core. And with the urban intellectuals trying to empathise with that core we need to get them understanding the simple things in life.
 
You know: Tories are greedy graspers, Lib Dems are fibbers with no grounding in politics. 
 
Better communication in terms of listening and getting both the policy and the language right is what is needed.
 
Cameron ONLY has presentation plus our weaker supporters' and swingers itchy feet. He really cannot reasonably claim that anyone has switched because of his policies. There are none. Cam has no clothes.
 
One of my old friends' dad used to ask: "Are you winning more than you're losing?" which is a good question to be asking our people. And if they don't realise that they are then spell it out.
 
Not spin. Just straight talk. 
 
And we need to stop hiding the step changes of the stealth re-distribution under a bushel.
 
And admit that however serious the instabilities in the world the Iraq War was not the right answer to any sensible question. 

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#19)

"Bill Quango MP" came over to my blog and in a comment <a href="http://chrispaul-labouroflove.blogspot.com/2008/05/tory-trimuphalism-they-just-dont-get-i t.html">on this post</a> he/she/it pointed me here for which I am grateful. This is interesting
 
The Labour Party do need to find some energy from somewhere it's true. But better presentation in terms of bells and whistles is not really the answer. The medium WAS the message. But bells and whistles is NOT our message for our core. And with the urban intellectuals trying to empathise with that core we need to get them understanding the simple things in life.
 
You know: Tories are greedy graspers, Lib Dems are fibbers with no grounding in politics. 
 
Better communication in terms of listening and getting both the policy and the language right is what is needed.
 
Cameron ONLY has presentation plus our weaker supporters' and swingers itchy feet. He really cannot reasonably claim that anyone has switched because of his policies. There are none. Cam has no clothes.
 
One of my old friends' dad used to ask: "Are you winning more than you're losing?" which is a good question to be asking our people. And if they don't realise that they are then spell it out.
 
Not spin. Just straight talk. 
 
And we need to stop hiding the step changes of the stealth re-distribution under a bushel.
 
And admit that however serious the instabilities in the world the Iraq War was not the right answer to any sensible question. 

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#20)

"Bill Quango MP" came over to my blog and in a comment <a href="http://chrispaul-labouroflove.blogspot.com/2008/05/tory-trimuphalism-they-just-dont-get-i t.html">on this post</a> he/she/it pointed me here for which I am grateful. This is interesting
 
The Labour Party do need to find some energy from somewhere it's true. But better presentation in terms of bells and whistles is not really the answer. The medium WAS the message. But bells and whistles is NOT our message for our core. And with the urban intellectuals trying to empathise with that core we need to get them understanding the simple things in life.
 
You know: Tories are greedy graspers, Lib Dems are fibbers with no grounding in politics. 
 
Better communication in terms of listening and getting both the policy and the language right is what is needed.
 
Cameron ONLY has presentation plus our weaker supporters' and swingers itchy feet. He really cannot reasonably claim that anyone has switched because of his policies. There are none. Cam has no clothes.
 
One of my old friends' dad used to ask: "Are you winning more than you're losing?" which is a good question to be asking our people. And if they don't realise that they are then spell it out.
 
Not spin. Just straight talk. 
 
And we need to stop hiding the step changes of the stealth re-distribution under a bushel.
 
And admit that however serious the instabilities in the world the Iraq War was not the right answer to any sensible question. 

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#21)

"Bill Quango MP" came over to my blog and in a comment <a href="http://chrispaul-labouroflove.blogspot.com/2008/05/tory-trimuphalism-they-just-dont-get-i t.html">on this post</a> he/she/it pointed me here for which I am grateful. This is interesting
 
The Labour Party do need to find some energy from somewhere it's true. But better presentation in terms of bells and whistles is not really the answer. The medium WAS the message. But bells and whistles is NOT our message for our core. And with the urban intellectuals trying to empathise with that core we need to get them understanding the simple things in life.
 
You know: Tories are greedy graspers, Lib Dems are fibbers with no grounding in politics. 
 
Better communication in terms of listening and getting both the policy and the language right is what is needed.
 
Cameron ONLY has presentation plus our weaker supporters' and swingers itchy feet. He really cannot reasonably claim that anyone has switched because of his policies. There are none. Cam has no clothes.
 
One of my old friends' dad used to ask: "Are you winning more than you're losing?" which is a good question to be asking our people. And if they don't realise that they are then spell it out.
 
Not spin. Just straight talk. 
 
And we need to stop hiding the step changes of the stealth re-distribution under a bushel.
 
And admit that however serious the instabilities in the world the Iraq War was not the right answer to any sensible question. 

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#23)

Because they can't give straight answers.

Because Gordon Brown talks about past achievements, and not about potential future ones.

Because David Cameron does not have a masochistic grin on his face. He looked serious on Friday, yet fresh and calm.

Re: Why are Labour's presentational skills so bad? (#24)

I find it fascinating that Contact Creator, our first big leap into the 21st century, still assumes everyone will be filling in voter ID sheets by hand.  No-one even thought that someone might want to do voter ID while sitting in front of their computer, and enter the results straight away.  We've still got a long way to go in terms of really making new technology work for us.