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2010.11.01
Venture Business Front Line - No. 143
“The use of the Internet for political campaigning”
by Edward Kuroki
There is no doubt that the Internet and other media technologies have become major factors for recent political campaigning.
Arianna Huffington, an author and syndicated columnist was quoted in The Huffington Post: "Were it not for the Internet, Barack Obama would not be president. Were it not for the Internet, Barack Obama would not have been the democratic nominee" while speaking on a panel at the Web 2.0 Summit 2008 (Nov 2008) in San Francisco.[1]
"Amber Lee Ettinger's video ("I Got a Crush on Obama" created by Ben Relles) has been viewed over 75 million times" which became one of the most effective tools for Mr. Obama's recent presidential campaign.[2] In 2010, Newsweek named this video as the #3 biggest Internet meme of the decade. [3]
An article titled "How Campaign Communication Technology Works" by Dave Roos, provided a chronology of "Memorable Moments in Web Politics" [4] prior to 2008 based on Pew Internet & American Life Study:
1994: Senator Dianne Feinstein of California launches the first campaign website
1996: In a televised debate, presidential candidate Bob Dole gives the wrong address for his web site.
1998: Ex-professional wrestler Jesse Ventura uses e-mail to rally support for his surprise victory as Minnesota governor.
2000: Presidential hopeful John McCain proves that the Web is a powerful fund-raising tool.
2002: Millions of Americans turn to the Web as their primary source of political information.
2004: Presidential candidate Howard Dean uses blogs and social networking sites like Meetup.com to launch a sweeping grassroots campaign.
2006: Internet videos become an integral part of campaign sites.
2007: Every presidential candidate has a MySpace and Facebook page. [Interesting note: most of the presidential candidates also had Twitter accounts]
Access to the Internet as a tool to conduct political campaigning is however unique to America. In some countries like the People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea, Vietnam, Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, etc., the use of the Internet is still censored by government authorities and freedom of political expression is restricted.
Surprisingly, even in Japan, only certain "Tier One Campaign Web Sites" are legal, and other activities such as donations, volunteer sign-up, blogs, audio, RSS feeds, "house parties," team building, personal fund-raising campaigns, etc. are still restricted. [5] This is due to a general lack of transparency in Japan's political campaigning process and a fear of sophisticated Astroturfing operations.
In this article, I have interviewed Ms. Laura M. Corser, a graduate student at Indiana University in the East Asian Languages and Literature Department. Ms. Corser graduated from Wellesley College [6] with a double-major in East Asian Studies and Political Science. While at Wellesley, she served as a student liaison to the Committee for Political and Legislative Action, secretary of Advocates for North Korean Human Rights, liaison for the Japan Club, captain of the Wellesley College Kendo Club, and president of Spectrum, Wellesley's LGBTQ organization. In this article, Ms. Corser provided unbiased and
intriguing responses to questions pertaining to the use of the Internet for political campaigning.
[KUROKI] How has the style of political campaigning in America changed with the introduction of radio, TV, Internet, etc. technologies?
[CORSER] Without a doubt, mass media technologies have personalized politics. The radio first enabled candidates to directly address their constituents on a previously unprecedented scale. People who might never have had the opportunity to go out and see a candidate -- let alone a candidate and their opponents -- could get a personal impression of the candidates through the style and manner of their address. This effect has been further compounded by televised debates and, most recently, the Internet. Debatably, ever since televised debates entered the political arena, the more charismatic candidate in a presidential election has won. One striking example is the 1960 debates between Nixon and Kennedy, the first televised presidential
debate. Those who listened to the radio staunchly believed that Nixon had won, while television viewers (the majority) believed Kennedy took the lead.[7] The televised presence of political candidates continues to affect elections to this day.
The question, then, becomes "where does the Internet fit in to the established paradigm?" Now, not only can we hear candidates on our radio and see them on our television, we can access every minute detail of their lives through our computer screens. According to my grandfather, a retired history teacher who has regaled me with political stories since I was a toddler, the mudslinging and personal attacks that have been rampant over the last decade didn't occur until the Lewinsky drama with President Clinton. Now, while that might be over-idealizing the past a bit, I think the Internet played a large role in that phenomenon. In the Information Age, everyone -- and most especially young people -- expect accessibility to every aspect of
people's lives. Perhaps even more importantly, information can be shared at the touch of a button. Minor mistakes can become major political news simply because of the speed with which it could spread. In short: for better or worse, the Internet disseminates information at an absolutely unprecedented speed to parties who can use that information in whatever way they choose.
[KUROKI] What are some of the most important factors for political campaigning in America? Why?
[CORSER] Aside from the logistical measures (personal outreach,organizational preparedness, and media control), it is absolutely imperative that American politicians present themselves in a way that makes the public think they are capable, but also "real" in the sense that they could easily be a neighbor. Laws regulate certain transparency and funding issues (e.g., who pays for and supports television campaign ads).
[KUROKI] Can you relate some of the challenges for political campaigning in America to other countries (i.e., Japan)?
[CORSER] Obviously financing is always a problem for politicians, and thus it is carefully regulated and monitored. Still, appealing to interest groups occurs, and perhaps more concerning, they pre-target voters and focus their energy and resources appealing to them (particularly baby boomers, due to the reliability of their voting.) This becomes a problem when certain groups are ignored -- for example, the young demographic that turned out in droves for President Obama, in large part because he addressed their issues and communicated with them through a forum they understand (i.e., the Internet). Political
campaigns in the United States devolved over the last decade into personal attacks as much as political platforms, both within and between the Democrat and Republican parties. Though I have not had the privilege of being IN Japan for a national election, from what I understand of Japanese politics, this has not occurred, especially not to the same degree. I think this has a lot to do with the differences between the parliamentary and presidential systems, the former being more party-oriented and the latter being more individual-oriented.
[KUROKI] What are some of the challenges for both Democrats and Republicans with regard to the use of Internet for political
campaigning? What are the pros and cons? Why?
[CORSER] The root of Internet campaign problems is control. The Internet as it exists in America cannot be reigned in and
regulated. Anyone can publish anything, regardless of its truthfulness, and the distinction between party and politician-approved messages and others becomes murky at best,especially if individuals post their own messages and opinions,
or even worse, impersonate someone. The anonymity of the Internet provides free fora for interaction, but that also means it is
inherently chaotic for politicians and campaign managers alike.
[KUROKI] How will the use of Internet affect the next U.S. presidential election? Can you think of any other technology or gadget that can affect the use of Internet?
[CORSER] Much of today's technology is working to increase our access to the Internet, particularly those corners of the Internet that mesh with our personal interests. While I wouldn't be surprised if a few new political apps come out between now and the 2012 elections, I don't think we will see technology creating as radical a change as the radio, television, or Internet in the next two years.
[1] Please refer to http://www.web2summit.com/web2010 for the latest Web 2.0 summit.
[2] http://obamagirl.com/
[3] http://2010.newsweek.com/top-10/internet-memes/obama-girl.html
[4] http://communication.howstuffworks.com/how-campaign-communication-technology-works.htm
[5] According to te Bivings Group identified three “tiers” of campaign Web sites offering different levels of technical
sophistication where Tier One Web sites offer the basic campaign information, such as candidate biography, contact information, donations and volunteer sign-up. In 2006, 80 to 94 percent of campaign Web sites offered Tier One features in the U.S.
[6] http://web.wellesley.edu/web -- Founded in 1870, it is one of the most prestigious (and the wealthiest) U.S. private woman's colleges. Among many successful graduates from Wellesley College, Mrs. Hillary Clinton (the 67th United States Secretary of State) is one of them.
[7] "THE KENNEDY-NIXON PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES, 1960 - The Museum of Broadcast Communications". The Museum of Broadcast Communications (MBC). http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entrycode=kennedy-nixon
Contact: Edward Kuroki
kuroki@validtechnology.com
http://www.validtechnology.com
ACKNOWLEDGMENT: Editorial and research assistance was provided by Freyja Sanger, Arlene Hirae and Michiko Kuroki.
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