Sunday, November 24, 2013

#Week 9: The Impact of Internet on Political Matters

In the 19th century, new railroads made fast moving-whistles-stop campaign tours possible. Things later changed when Kennedy/Nixon debate was first televised in 1960 that gave rise to a new era of media optics. Then, with the advancement in modern technology, the world has, once again, witnessed another significant shift in the way political leaders are chosen. Understanding the increasing power of the Internet, many politicians have been embracing digital strategies as the new form of communication within their political campaigns, especially Barack Obama.



Even though many may argue that were it not for Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter, Barack Obama would never have been able to be a nominee or even won over his party in 2008’s election. However, we can’t deny Obama’s success as his historic victory has significantly transformed global political landscape. So what’s that about new media technologies that were the major driven forces to Obama’s achievement? Via interactive Web 2.0 tools, Obama’s campaign was able to reach, for the first time, millions of young voters who are most likely to have a low degree of involvement in political matters. Eventually, more votes were obtained and Obama has finally bucked the trend of lacking young supporters that other candidates had been encountered. Even more significant, the Internet also helped Obama in terms of breaking down various financial barriers that are commonly associated with an upstart presidential campaign. To be more specific, Obama took advantage of YouTube for free advertising. Traditionally, it would have cost an estimated $47 million if Obama had chosen to run 14.5-million-hours videos on broadcast television, but adopting YouTube as a central platform allowed him to advertise for free. In fact, those videos were more effective than television ads as viewers could still view Obama’s videos without having their television shows interrupted. However, what makes Obama’s campaign one of the best-financed campaigns in history lies in his ability to raise fund from individual donors online.


On the other hand, there has also been a considerable change in fact-checking, with citizens using the Internet to find past speeches that prove a politician wrong and then using the Web to alert their fellows citizens. This had made numerous politicians anxious since they need to watch their tongue before uploading any new video or even before delivering any speech. In other words, unlike television for the most part demanded edited or even fake content, the new medium demands authenticity which many politicians haven’t been used to, resulting in several unfortunate incidents that the world has witnessed. In addition, while the Internet brings greater access to information, there’s no guarantee that information found online is true. Without the standards of professional journalism commonly associated with traditional news source, unscrupulous bloggers may promote spurious arguments or lies that significantly affect a candidate’s reputation without fear of consequences. Having said that, it is important for viewers to be aware when it comes to evaluate any presidential campaign.

In a nutshell, it is difficult to predict how the Internet will evolve and take the realm of politics to the next level. However, one thing for sure is that the Internet really holds the power to significantly influence the political landscape when being used correctly and creatively. Furthermore, it is important to note that as journalism in digital era guarantees no piece of information to be 100% accurate, we should be considerate with our vote.

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