The Top 5 Uncomfortable Viral Videos Featuring 2008 Presidential Candidates

I've written about the power of viral videos in the past but there's been so much more material even just between then and now that it warrants another post.

In the internet age, footage of presidential candiates can often come back to haunt them, or alternatively, can be remixed in ways that can be disquieting. In some instances, even videos the candidates approved of or produced themselves can fall into this category. Here are, in my opinion, the most disturbing, hilarious, uncomfortable internet videos featuring 2008 Presidential Candidates:

Mike Gravel's 2008 Campaign Video - In this movie, Mike Gravel stares frighteningly into the camera for a full minute, then throws a rock into a pond and walks away in the distance. To quote Jon Stewart, the message of this video is not so much "Vote for Mike Gravel," but rather, "After watching this movie, you will die in seven days."



Obama Girl - There's a popular adage is that voting is like masturbating: They're both best done alone. But with the Obama Girl video, these two famous pasttimes can now be combined.

The content of this video isn't as disturbing as the concept, in which an extremely beautiful woman sings of her undying love for Obama. Had this been done from scratch by a deliriously insane fan of Obama, it would be truly pertubing. However, the fact that it was conceived by an advertising executive makes it slightly more palatable. Nonetheless, we aren't used to seeing our presidents as sex objects, although it's been tried with mixed results in the past.



Hillary Clinton's Southern Accent - This cringe-inducing video made its rounds on the internet and on television. In it, Hillary is speaking at a church in Selma, Alabama and tries to adopt the tone of the author she's reading. The results were, at best, mixed. I defy you not to be uncomfortable when watching it:



Jon McCain sings Barbara Streisand - In a hilarious SNL sketch from 2002, McCain tries to perform some covers of Streisand's greatest hits. The results will haunt your dreams:



Rudy Giuliani in Drag - One of the men in this video wants to be your president. The other one makes more money in a day than you do in a year. I don't know why but every time I watch this, it sends a chill down my spine:


Can you think of any more? E-mail me at Davechensblog (at) Gmail and include the video, some back story, and your website (so I can link to you) and I'll update this post with the new video.