Martin Eisenstadt’s Blog

Have the Jonas Brothers taken a cue from world celebrity Barack Obama and shunned their own religion?  I have it on good authority that at tonight’s Teen Choice Awards on Fox (actually taped last night, and attended by my 11-year-old niece), the Jonas Brothers make a surprise guest appearance and stole the show right from under the perky nose of host Miley Cyrus.

A couple quick points: the so-called JoBros thanked everyone under the sun for their success (parents, Disney, et al), and even “the Big Man who’s with them everywhere they go.” God? Jesus? Allah? Nope. They meant their enormous bodyguard, Big Rob. Why is this relevant? Because as some angry commenters wrote the last time I mentioned the Jonas Brothers, they apparently come from a deeply religious family and their early work was often identified as Christian rock. Of course, this was before Disney got a hold of them and packaged them for the masses. I would suggest that the Jonas Brothers had to lose their religion to attract the broadest audience - in the same way Barack Obama had to sever his ties to Rev. Jeremiah Wright before he could assume the Democratic nomination.

The Flying Jonas Brothers at the TCAs

Compare this to Miley (aka Hannah Montana) Cyrus. She made a point of thanking Jesus Christ first and foremost in her speech. Yet another way of sticking it to her Disney masters? Maybe. It seems the clock is ticking on how long Ms. Cyrus is hanging around the House of Mouse before becoming the next Hilary Duff, or worse, Lindsay Lohan. (again, thanks to my niece for that analysis).

In the battle of preteen hearts and minds, The Jonas Brothers’ ascension over Miley Cyrus is very much like Barack Obama’s triumph over Hillary Clinton. Yes, girls want to cheer and adore their self-empowerment peer with the million-dollar smile (one actual Hannah Montana lyric: “Who said, who said I won’t be President? I say, I say you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.”). But when push comes to shove, young girls would rather swoon for the cute boys. That’s just human nature.

So to my colleagues on the McCain campaign, the take home lesson is don’t count on getting any of those Hillary women to cross over to the GOP (even with a Carly Fiorina or Gov. Sarah Palin in the veep spot). At the end of the day, they’ll vote with their hearts not their heads. And they’ll vote for the cute boy. Barack Obama’s not a celebrity for nothing.

(Final note on the Jonas Brothers: They conspicuously were NOT wearing their trademark keffiyehs - no scarves, no ascots, no cravats neither. I guess Disney’s been reading my blog, and took our criticism to heart.)