Social Media in Politics and the 2012 Presidential Race

So, you’re watching your favorite show and then the television goes to commercial. One of the commercials is a negative campaign advertisement against a Presidential candidate. Chances are, you probably are going to watch and afterwards reflect about the lack of validity, or you are going to switch to another channel. Just like our world is constantly changing due to globalization and technology, so is modern-day campaigning, and with the 2012 Presidential Election coming up, candidates are doing everything they can to be on the cutting edge to oust their opponent.

One of the reasons President Obama was so successful in the 2008 election was through his campaign methods. Not only did the President use his website mybarackobama.com to organize and fund a grassroots campaign, but he also used social media like Facebook and MySpace (when it was popular) to gather donations and support. His viral campaign introduced a new wave of politics in the 21^st century, and he continues to be an innovator when it comes to this upcoming election.

This Thursday night, Obama and his team will be releasing a much anticipated documentary called “The Road We’ve Traveled” which will air on his YouTube Channel and the platform will be used for organizing and funding his campaign. Viewers will be able to share the video on Facebook, Twitter, email, and other social medias, and they will be able to donate without leaving Obama’s page and with a simple click of their mouse. By having people “share” the video, campaign strategists are hoping that people will make their friends believe in the movie too and that the video will have more legitimacy if a peer endorses it.

Eventually, the Obama campaign would like to use media like YouTube to see the geographic location of viewers and see a list of their Facebook friends to extend their message.

Although the official Republican Presidential Candidate has not yet been nominated, Mitt Romney is taking a page out of Obama’s book and using his campaign website and YouTube Channel to allow viewers to sign up for campaign events, organize and donate.

So, campaign tricks like literature in the mail and television commercials are still pretty important, but with almost everyone having the Internet, a Facebook, and a Twitter, campaign strategies are molding to the new technology to expand their base and gain more votes. Not only is it now important to get their ideas out in the public, it is also important to be an innovator in campaign strategies using social media and technology to win a race.