How would you have timed the release of the Romney "47%" videotape?

Actually the video was recorded in May, but Mother Jones didn’t have an unedited copy to move forward with until yesterday. They were in competition with the Huffington Post to see who would get the entire video first. Maybe the person who provided the video had a reason for giving it up now, but Mother Jones just put it up when they received it.

Source

I just saw another one that showed Romney saying Palistanian/ Israeli peace was impossible.
The press holds lots of things and uses it when it likes.
Years ago (maybe the ‘80’s) Unsolved Mysteries had a segment on child sexual abuse in the Catholic Church and the Church moving them and hiding them before they were brought to justice. It was at least 10 years before it became a big deal on the news.
I think it’s important to realize that the press machine is not impartial. I don’t like Mitt, will never vote for him, but I struggle to try to not be reactionary and try to get my head high enough above it all to discern the bull shit from the truth. I really don’t like being manipulated.

Still, assuming you had control of the tape, how would you time its release?

Personally, I would have released this tape as soon as I got my hands on it. It is no secret that I do not trust Romney any further than I could pick him up & throw him ( & since I am in my 60’s & have a very bad back – picking him up & throwing him is impossible for me !). In my opinion he has no understanding of either the average American or the Americans living in poverty…. and he has NO compassion for anyone. He is all about making money & not paying taxes on the money he makes.

@Linda_Owl So you think you could do the most damage by letting it out as soon as possible. Does anyone think releasing it closer to the election would do more damage?

@Judi, @wundayatta, @Linda_Owl Do read @SuperMouse‘s answer. Yes, there are conspiracies behind a few things, but there are are conspiracy theorists seeing a conspiracy behind many things where there is none. In this case, the magazine released the tape as soon as they were able to definitively verify its authenticity. There have been brief clips of it floating around now since shortly after the fundraiser. One snippet of it was posted on Rachel Maddow’s blog by someone impersonating her. She tried to verify its authenticity but was unable to do so, as were others who found brief snippets of it. Only when the entire video surfaced did it become possible to verity it.

As to maximum damage, probably the Swift Boat attack timing would do that. But then, the Swift Boaters were just making up there story, so they had no worry about anyone else scooping them on the “news”.

What was the swift boat timing?

It was a better idea to release it before later rather than sooner. There are always stories that are new and powerful enough to get the public thinking of some new tragedy instead of being focus on the elections. So the closer to the election the better. But not too close where the story may not spread in time to make a difference and make everyone aware of what a douche he is. I don’t know where Romney gets his figures from. I find it hard to believe that 47% don’t pay taxes. Well unless he is talking about retired people living on S.Security. I Know that I grew up in a poor family and my dad paid his taxes and never got a tax refund over 100 bucks. Some years he didn’t even get that. No matter how broke my husband and I ever were, We haven’t missed paying taxes in over 30 years. I knew plenty of people like myself who also paid their taxes. Funny thing, it isn’t the poor who fight the system and refuse to pay. We couldn’t afford the lawyers and most of us do a straight tax form with no deductions except for dependents because they have no savings or assets.
Now as for the retired who put years of money into S.Security. Of course it is their freaken right to collect and expect the government to hold up its end of the deal. That’s not even asking for a hand out. That’s getting your own money back. And they shouldn’t be taxed on money they were already taxed on. And if you get hurt or sick than that is also what S.Security is for. I think he should go down in history as the biggest A-hole that ever ran for president. I’m glad someone had the courage to put this out. How anyone can defend his thinking is beyond me.
So instead of him open his speeches about the American people, he really should start with I believe in half of the American People (if that).

@Pandora This will probably get me flamed, but I believe Dubya has that title sewn up although I suppose the argument could be made that he is actually the biggest A-hole ELECTED (the second time at least) to the presidency.

@rojo I don’t care what you call him so long as it is Mr. President. LOL

@wundayatta August 5, 2004. I somehow thought it was later. I should always look things up before spouting off.

Well, maybe this is good timing, after all.

@wundayatta It was probably good timing for Democrats, as it turns out. George W. Bush and previous administrations going back to Reagan and not leaving out Clinton and his constant triangulation had already sewn the seeds of the Great Recession. Has Kerry won, he would have gotten the blame for something his policies had nothing on Earth to do with, and the GOP would have had clear sailing to go do the same thing they already did in the Great Depression, the two savings and loan bailouts, and the Great Recession all over again.