February 26, 2008

Obamamania - Questioning the hype

Senator Obama has undoubtedly used his online popularity to propel himself this far in the presidential nominations; however, talk of a possible backlash is beginning to stir on the Net. 

Questioning a candidate whose popularity rivals that of JFK seems rediculous, but the Web has shown signs of strain from supporting Obama in his race for the Democratic Presidencial Nomination.  Mixed in with the YouTube videos, blogs, and websites created in support of Obama are popping up "anti-Obama" sites whose creators are fed up with the hype surrounding the Obama campaign.

It has been the grassroots activists and online supporters who have propelled Sen. Obama into mainstream popularity, so bloggers have no one to blame but themselves.

In such a tight race, the online political fervor may aide the Democratic Nominees in spotlighting their positions on important issues. The Obama-mania represents genuine drive, hope, and interest in the Democratic party; the big picture that democrats should be looking at with a sigh of relief.

Is the surge of political bantor taking place on the Web truly about Barack Obama, or are we just starting to realize that many Americans are using the Internet as their main channel for engaging in politics?

Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 21, 2008

Saving a Presidential Nomination in the 21 Century: It's not happening online

Hilary Clinton has to do something to counter the momentum of the Obama campaign, but all signs online show that its just not happening. 

Although Clinton’s cohorts have tried to rally in support, reportedly providing the campaign with  $15 million online in the first 15 days of February, Clinton’s overall online donations pale in comparison to Barack Obama’s.  And it's not just money; Hilary seems to be falling short everywhere online these days - from the obvious to the obscure:

YouTube’s YouChoose08 has been a consistent indicator of online supporters for candidates. Obama is beating Hillary 3 to 1.  Barack Obama has 29,411 subscribers and 688 videos on his YouTube channel while Hillary only has 10, 401 subscribers and 264 views.

 

At www.cafepress.com, a website which allows anyone to create and sell t-shirts and other items, Obama-related sales now account for 69% of all presidential-candidate sales; Clinton items are only pulling in a meek 14%.  With only 12 days remaining until the Texas, Ohio, and Rhode Island, and Vermont primaries, Clinton needs to change her plan of attack.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 03:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 09, 2007

The Rise of Small Donors

Fundraising is rapidly changing in presidential politics.  Clearly big money is still king, but small donors are playing an increasingly important role.

This cycle Barack Obama is crafting a new approach to political fundraising by obtaining smaller amounts from more supporters. By generating enough excitement for his ’08 campaign, Obama is receiving smaller donations, $100 or perhaps less from hundreds of thousands of people across the country. In doing so, the campaign is able to return to these smaller donors month after month to collect more cash. This new brand of thinking is already paying dividends, as Obama has shattered fundraising records thus far.

The Edwards campaign understands the value of small donors as well.  During the month of June, Edwards focused on “small change for big change” fundraisers.  The main goal for these events is to cultivate a list of small donors that the campaign can turn to in the future.  In addition, by emphasizing small donor events, the campaign brings new people in the political process.  Edwards used SMS technology for the first ever text message fundraiser, which also focused on smaller contributions.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 21, 2007

Hillary Plays Catch Up

Through a YouTube video, Senator Clinton asked her online supporters to choose her presidential campaign's theme song. 

The choices ranged from U2 to The Temptations.  This action created a mild buzz throughout the Web last week, with many people trading song choices and jokes on several listservs and blogs.  Despite the interest gained through this internet moment, the campaign may have missed a large opportunity to parlay the extra attention into tangible results.  Many bloggers and Web observers pointed out that to vote for your favorite campaign song you did not have to submit an E-mail address or any other personal information.  Choosing the Hillary theme song probably brought many new people to the campaign Web site, and the campaign could have missed a moment to chorale many new supporters. 

Clinton may be leading all the national polls, but she has fallen behind Edwards and Obama on the Web.  The Obama and Edwards campaigns would not have missed this opportunity, and both are using the internet in groundbreaking ways.  While Team Clinton uses quick click polls to pick a campaign theme song the Edwards camp is asking supporters to send in videos via cell phones, which are being integrated into actual campaign ads.    All the candidates are using YouTube to communicate with online supporters, but Hillary's videos seem overproduced compared to Edwards and Obama.  The internet is the home of innovation and ideas, not the place for over produced political videos.  Hillary Clinton is the media anointed frontrunner, but on the Net she is playing catch up. 

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 14, 2007

Campaigns Look to Text Messaging

Text messaging is joining the ranks of MySpace and YouTube as a popular tool of Democratic Presidential candidates. 

John Edwards and Hillary Clinton are both using text messaging to build support for their respective campaigns.  Over the weekend the Edwards camp launched a new website, www.supportthetroopsendthewar.com, and asked supporters to text the word "Iraq" to show their support. The Clinton campaign is using text messaging to update supporters on the latest news from the campaign trail.  Text messaging is just another example of how technology is changing political campaigning.  Cell phones and email addresses are becoming the most useful and efficient means for campaigns to stay in touch with supporters.

Text messaging combined with blogs and social networking sites is giving the 2008 presidential campaigns the ability to create a community of supporters, and within these communities supporters are able to organize rallies, house parties, and other events in their local areas across the nation.  In 2004, Howard Dean was able to recruit massive amount of volunteers, but the technology at the time did not allow the campaign to efficiently mobilize these supporters.  The '08 contenders have learned from the Dean experience, but still struggle to maintain control of this brave new interactive world in politics.

www.supportthetroopsendthewar.com
www.johnedwards.com
www.hillaryclinton.com

Clinton Reaches out to Voters with Text Messages
TLK2UL8R, HILLARY

Posted by Buzz Webster at 03:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 28, 2006

Let the (Online) Smear Campaigns Begin!

ImpeachPAC has unveiled the progressive blogosphere's first attack ad.

In the closely-watched Democratic primary battle between incumbent Senator Joe Lieberman and his progressive challenger Ned Lamont, attack ads have found their way onto the internet.

IPAC has issued both a written internet ad and a YouTube video asserting that Lieberman, along with other Republican officials, has interests in keeping extremists (such as professed Neo-Nazi Robert Lee West) in the military. 

Some viewers have expressed discontent with the style of the ad:

Wallymar: I'm all for Ted Lamont winning this race with Lieberman and there are many ways to make a good supporting case.  This is not one of them and I doubt that Ted Lamont would approve of this message.

And so the ever so popular smear campaign finds its way into the internet world.  I anticipate this will be the first of many to come in the 2006 race.

View the Ad

View the YouTube Video

Posted by Buzz Webster at 12:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 07, 2006

U.S. Campaigns Go Mobile

After achieving success abroad in nations from France to South Korea, text messaging is catching on in the U.S. as a method of mobilizing the public.

At least two politicians - John Edwards and Rick Santorum - have launched text message campaigns.

Both candidates are inviting supporters to register online in order to receive text messages from them. Edwards’s supporters can sign up at his One America site; Santorum’s can find information on how to sign up on his Web site, although at present Santorum’s SMS efforts are targeted at women’s outreach efforts. Santorum and Edwards have both said that they plan to use the technology to send issue-based messages.

While proponents of SMS argue that it is a good way to maintain ongoing contact with busy constituents, some analysts worry that the strategy may prove to be too expensive to attract anyone other than core supporters. But if it is successful for Edwards and Santorum, SMS technologies may be used in get out the vote efforts, and citizens may even be able to donate to campaigns via their cell phones.

Related Articles:
Between Polar Opposites Is This Equator: Text Me
Send An SMS To The World

Posted by Buzz Webster at 01:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 30, 2006

Kuwait’s First Ever Internet Election

Kuwait's parliamentary elections mark a number of firsts: the first time women are able to vote and the first time that the Internet has played a role in a Kuwaiti election.

Kuwaiti college students and other young Kuwaitis have organized groups to lobby for electoral reform and fight vote buying as well. On its Web site, one group called Kuwait5, urged Kuwaitis to send SMSs to reform candidates as well as messages to others ``whose positions are not clear.''

 

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

June 12, 2006

Dem Politicians Court Liberal Bloggers

The psuedo-mini-political convention, called the YearlyKos, was organized by Markos Moulitsas, a self-described Democratic activist and founder of the Daily Kos Web site.

About 1,000 progressive political bloggers attended the convention along with a parade of prospective Democratic presidential candidates and party leaders, held in Las Vegas, this past weekend.  The event was a mile-stone in modern politics, as it seems that mainstream political figures have begun to understand the political influence and utility of the liberal blogger's support. 

Of course attempting to buy this support will always occur, like Virginia Gov. Mark Warner, who spent over $50,000 throwing a party for the bloggers in Las Vegas' Stratosphere Hotel and Casino.  The festivities included an Elvis impersonator, a vodka-chilling ice sculpture, a chocolate fondue waterfall, and free roller-coaster rides.  And although Warner far out-spent his peers, he wasn't alone in his utilization of retail politics.  Retired Gen. Wesley Clark threw an after-hours party Thursday night at the Hard Rock Hotel, and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson showed up Friday morning with breakfast pastries.

Still, the convention intimated that the future of American Politics is rapidly changing. And those politicians who didn't show up may have regrets about their decision later.  Who didn't show?  Hillary Rodham Clinton, John Kerry, Evan Bayh, Joe Biden, Chris Dodd, Russ Feingold and former Sens. John Edwards and Sen. Tom Daschle, to name a few. 

Of the blogosphere's place in partisan politics, Moulitas says "Both parties have failed us. Republicans have failed us because they can't govern. Democrats have failed because they can't get elected. So now it's our turn."



Related Articles:

Democrats Reid, Vilsack, Warner Woo Bloggers as Web Clout Grows

Gathering Highlights Power of the Blog

Democratic Presidential Candidates Try to Take Advantage of Blogging

Politicians Court Bloggers in Vegas

How Much is That Blogger in the Window?

Posted by Buzz Webster at 02:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

May 31, 2006

An Internet President in ’08?

If Unity08 has their way, there will be a third viable presidential candidate in 2008, chosen through an online convention.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 02, 2006

Singapore's Gov Gags Online Politics

Podcasts, blogs and other Web sites that could be otherwise used for political discussion for the upcoming parliamentary elections have been outlawed.

 

Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 28, 2006

Wiki Woes for U.S. Politicians

A Georgia gubernatorial candidate accepted the resignation of her campaign manager after he was accused of changing the online Wikipedia biography of an opponent.

Secretary of State Cathy Cox's opponent, Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor, said campaign manager Morton Brilliant altered an online encyclopedia entry to include a reference to Taylor's son being arrested for DUI after an accident that killed his passenger. Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales confirmed these accusations. The Taylor for Governor campaign responded by accusing Cox of exploiting a family tragedy for political purposes and calling for her resignation, although Cox denied any knowledge of the addition.



This story is only the most highly publicized of a number of recent campaign scuffles involving Wikipedia. Brilliant has also been accused of editing the Wikipedia profile of current Governor Mark Sanford. Nearly twenty more changes have since been made to Sanford's profile, presumably by both sides of the aisle.



Wikipedia has attempted to deal with problems concerning politically motivated revisions by tightening its submission guidelines and setting up alerts so that operators know when Capitol Hill staffers edit online profiles.



Related Articles:

Cox to 'Deal With' Wiki-Attack

Campaign Manager Resigns Amid Wikipedia Flap

South Carolina Politicos Get Tangled in Web Forum

Posted by Buzz Webster at 12:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 24, 2006

Save the Internet Campaign Launched

The SavetheInternet.com Coalition is a group of grassroots organizations, bloggers and concerned citizens that are banding together to protect a free and open Internet.

The coalition is asking Internet users to sign a petition supporting Net neutrality and let their representatives know what they do online.

 

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 17, 2006

Pennsylvania’s High-Tech Senate Race

One of the most closely watched Senate races in the U.S. has a major presence on the Web.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 14, 2006

Activists and Politicos Go Mobile in India

India has more than 139.6 million mobile phone users, and they are putting their phones to good use in politics and activism.

Soon after Indian Minister, Arjun Singh announced plans to reserve a larger percentage of seats in elite higher education institutions for the “backward classes,” opposition  sprang into action. A blog was created to gather opinions, and SMS and email campaigns were launched to inform and rally activists.

SMS isn’t only being used as a tool by the grassroots in India. Politicians trying to campaign amid an Election Commission crack down on written campaign material, are using SMS and email as alternatives to communicate with voters and ask them to, “vte 4 me.” With India’s fast-growing mobile market, expect more SMS campaigns to follow.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 12:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 07, 2006

Italian Election Campaign Online

Italy’s parliamentary elections are just around the corner.  While the Web still only plays a supporting role to TV in the campaign strategies of the major political parties, their online presence is worth a look.

Forza Italia, the party of incumbent Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, has a very average web site – informative but not engaging. The party also offers two issue-specific satellite sites: http://www.menotassepertutti.it focuses on the election promise of “less taxes for all” and includes a tax calculator where citizens can see what would happen in their specific circumstances under Berlusconi’s promises, and a forum www.sprechirossi.it, which literally translates to “red waste.”

The two major opposition parties have more commanding online campaigns. The Democratici di Sinistra, or Democrats of the Left, like Forza Italia, also has two satellite sites. The first is a Web TV platform with interviews and videos of politicians. The second is the story of the daily life of the Hope Family that suffers under the Berlusconi government. The Web site of the centrist party Margherita  includes the most comprehensive information and offers the most interactivity with many forums for discussion of political topics.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 05, 2006

It's the Size that Counts

The Hill has compared the email lists of House members, determining that its the size that counts when it comes to being able to communicate with constituents. Size varies greatly among House members - from a few hundred to several thousand.

Read the full article here: Musgrave has Longest E-Mail List

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 28, 2006

Israeli Elections on the Web

Today Israelis head to the polls, but in the weeks leading up to the election they were logging on, tuning in and ringing out to follow campaign and election news.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 01:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 08, 2006

Opposition Politicians in Belarus Campaign Online

Politicians in Belarus who oppose incumbent President Lukashenka and others in power have turned to the internet to get their message out.

The internet is one of the only sources of free media in the tiny country, where newspapers, radio, and television are all under state control, and the opposition candidates are taking notice. All four candidates All of the four candidates for the upcoming presidential election, including the incumbent, have launched campaign websites.

In spite of the extraordinary digital divide within the country, opposition candidate Alyaksandr Milinkevich's website, which was launched in November 2005, currently attracts more than 1,000 visitors every day. Where only 2 percent of the population had access to the Internet in the previous presidential election in 2001, now nearly 15 percent do.

What effect will the new technology have on the presidential race? We'll have to wait until March 19 to find out.

Read more in Radio Free Europe's article "Belarus: Opposition Politicians Embrace Internet, Despite Digital Divide."

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 02, 2005

Cold Weather Sends Canadian Campaigns Online

As Canada gears up for elections in January, temperatures continue to drop. Many predict that the icy winter weather will send campaigns online.

People in the political arena expect the cold winter weather will play a major role in the upcoming federal election campaign.

Less door-knocking, more online campaigning

Faced with the spectre of eight long, cold weeks of campaigning, some political organizers in Winnipeg predict a slow start to the campaign.

"I think people don't want to do nothing before Christmas, because then you're kind of losing your place," said Leslie Turnbull, who works with the NDP. "But I think that the real push will be after Christmas.

Conservative strategist Rob Godin also expects his party to roll out its campaign in stages: "With the campaign likely to be divided into two pieces, you're going to see it divided in two parts."

Greg Ashley, who works with the Liberals, expects a different campaign from the last federal election.

"I believe that we're going to a really upbeat and electronic campaign this time around," he said. "We're going to see more telephones, more internet campaigning. It'll be quite different."

Manitoba Candidates Face Long, Cold Campaign

http://www.cbc.ca/manitoba/story/mb_election-20051128.html

Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 10, 2005

Governor Schwarzenegger's Campaign Website Questioned

Governor Schwarzenegger's campaign Website posted a form asking for stories about inferior teachers, inciting mixed reactions from Californians.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s campaign posted a form o­n its website asking Californians for stories about bad teachers. The form was abruptly removed when a reporter inquired about it.

Posted o­n the Website www.joinarnold.com, the form asked: “Have a story about a teacher who just might not be cut out for the job, yet nothing can be done because of tenure? Please tell us. We’d like to share the stories of Californian’s like you.”

Reaction to the call have been mixed.  Some defend it while others claim that this is yet another example of why they will stay at home on election day.

Governor's Campaign Drops Calls for Stories on Bad Teachers

http://www.blackvoicenews.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=3685&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0

Posted by Buzz Webster at 12:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 30, 2005

*PoliticsOnline Asks the Readers*

Uganda has begun a $1 million advertising campaign with CNN to change its image abroad, which includes online advertising. This has us wondering - have other countries used online advertising to improve their images? If you know something, share it with us!

Starting this October, millions of television viewers around the world will be shown a different picture of Uganda, away from war, disease, corruption, major criticisms that have seen the country's image abroad take a nosedive in the last few months. Uganda has sealed a $1 million deal with CNN called ‘Brand Uganda’ which will include sponsorship and advertising on the Inside Africa show on CNN, CNN Online and CNN Travel Magazine.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200509250291.html

 

***PoliticsOnline Asks the Readers***

Hiring PR firms to campaign and buy ad space to promote a country’s image is not unusual –Following 9/11 Middle Eastern countries rushed to take out advertising space to tackle image problems in the United States-- what is unusual is that Uganda’s campaign includes an online advertising piece. Do you know of any other online country advertising buys?  Submit your ideas to editor@politicsonline.com.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 18, 2005

Using Blogs To Teach Political Consultants

Phil Tajitsu Nash, CEO of CampaignAdvantage.com, filled us in on how GWU is educating the next generation of Campaign gurus:

Campaign Advantage President Emi Ireland has been teaching "Politics and the New Media"
at George Washington University's Graduate School of Political Management (GSPM) this
summer, and the way she has been doing it could be a sign of the future for political
consultant training.

If you look at http://presscontrolshift.blogspot.com/ you will see that she has created a class blog, which not only contains her class-related comments to the students, but also contains her own political commentary as well.  If you look on the right hand column, you will see the class syllabus, reading schedule, and links to the material she covered in her class lectures.
http://www.emilienneireland.com/blackboard/index.html
http://www.emilienneireland.com/blackboard/schedule.html

The readings list provides links to the most recent articles on Internet campaigning, and
can be used as a refresher course by any political consultant.  Even the videos and other
materials she references will be of interest to politicians and consultants seeking to
incorporate the Internet into their campaign strategies.

While some of these features can be found in courses taught by Politics Online and other
leading Internet consultants, one feature that sets this website apart is the blogroll found in the right hand column.  Each of the 35 students in the class was required to create a blog, and blog daily for the first five weeks of class and four days a week for the last five weeks. 

Aside from posting on their own blogs daily, they also had to post daily on a classmate's
blog and post weekly on a mainstream blog. 

Note the left, right, and non-partisan blogs listed at http://www.emilienneireland.com/blackboard/info-register.html

Students reported that the blog transformed their lives, making even the most luddite
a Netizen.  They were proud of their online identities, and the quality of the work they
produced was higher than most papers that are handed in, graded, and thrown away
in the typical university course.  In fact, the quality was so good that the only other
required work product will be an Online Campaign Strategic Plan.
http://www.emilienneireland.com/blackboard/info-plan.html

It was time-consuming getting all students online, and Emi had to produce a separate
tech blog to help them with technical questions at http://askemi.blogspot.com , but the net result is a class of bloggers who have a first-hand knowledge of the strengths and
limits of online campaigning. 

More details will be in the third edition of "Winning Campaigns online."

Posted by Buzz Webster at 09:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 14, 2005

New Websites Launch

It probably wasn't a coincidence that Hillary Clinton and the RNC relaunched their websites on the exact same day.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 03, 2005

Internet & Iranian Elections

On June 17, Iranians will go to the polls to elect a president, with many voters surfing the web before they cast their ballots.

 Blogging has gone international in a big way. And in Iran, blogging means that news, ideas and rumors are bypassing traditional censors, according to Yahoo News. As one of Iran's leading bloggers recently pointed out at opendemocracy.net, Iran's blogs are generating "an unprecedented amount of information [and] pre-election news has...been much more transparent." In fact, Hossein Derakhshan argued, " it will probably be one of the most open and transparent elections Iran has ever seen."

The internet is playing a major role. This is the first time, for example, that most of the major candidates (except the oldest ones) have their own websites. And with an estimated three or four million internet users in Iran, blogs are opening up Iranian society and culture--despite the enduring threat of government censorship and imprisonment of journalists and activists.

Bloggers Of Iran
http://news.yahoo.com /s/thenation/20050530/cm_thenation/72947/nc:742

Iran Crushes Blog Spring
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.06/po sts.html?pg=6

Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 31, 2005

Running The Numbers

Some Interesting Tidbits From The RNC’s BlogFood

125 Million Voters Turned Out In 2004
According to a Census Bureau report, 125 million Americans turned out to vote in 2004, which is 64 percent of American's 18 years and older. Amongst the findings are that more women than men voted, Minnesota had the highest turn out with 79 percent and Wisconsin was second with 77 percent turn out.

FactCheck.Org: Biography Of A Bad Statistic
FactCheck.org released a new study yesterday noting the statistic that abortions have increased under President Bush that many Democrats are repeating – including DNC Chairman Howard Dean – is false. 

Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 17, 2005

Mayoral Candidate Has Sense Of Humor

 A candiate running for mayor of Bethlehem, Penn,  created a hilarious web clip based on viagra.

Anthony Rybank made the video for TV and then added it his website.  (Hat tip Bob Hoffman at PoliticalGateway.com)

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 16, 2005

UK Election Online Post Mortem

 UK candidates fail to harness Internet, while news media thrives.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 07:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

April 28, 2005

BetPoll Forcasts UK Election

BetPoll is a new service reporting betting prices as forecasts. Visit www.betpoll.com each day to see our forecasts of the key outcomes in the UK General Election. Some of our forecasts at midday on April 27th:

• Overall (Labour) majority: 87
• Turnout: 64 per cent
• Labour seats: 363
• Conservative seats: 194
• Liberal Democrat seats: 65

Enquiries: press@betpoll.com

Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 25, 2005

Labour Has Top Election Website

Labour couldn't be happier a Usability Company study named it as having the best political website.

Silicon reports Labour as having the slickest website in a study - which assessed both usability and accessibility of the campaign websites. This might be good news for the PR department, but Conservatives appear to be the real winners. Articles last week showed conservatives with the most traffic and the winners in a pre-election poll.

For the lastest UK online election coverage visit PoliticsOnline.com.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 12:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

April 15, 2005

Special Report: UK Elections Online

The United Kingdom has launched into its first internet intensive election, much like what witnessed during the United States 2004 election season. With a 30 day election season Conservatives, Labour and other Parties are using rapid response tactics of the internet to mobilize and persuade voters.

From vote swapping to political blogging everything is being laid on the line for what is expected to be a very close election.

PoliticsOnline will be tracking all the latest online election news and information until Election Day through our websites and newsletters. Visit our UK Election page for comprehensive coverage of the elections online. Also check out our new UK section of the e-newsletter.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 02:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

April 01, 2005

Online Campaigning Breaks Loose In UK

The UK elections are heating up online, with much of the same strategy used in the 2004 US elections being employed. One of the most controversial tactics to unfold this week, was Britain’s Labour Party announcement that it has hired former Kerry campaigner Zack Exley as an Internet consultant.

Labour also blasted out its first star-powered email this week penned by best selling author John O'Farrell, who encouraged members to get out and volunteer. 

The UK’s Conservative Right is similarly turning to popular American online campaigning techniques, such as the recent launch of a blog promoting support tax relief, withdrawal from the euro and pre-emptive action against terrorists. Conservatives aim to use new media activism to revive the party and overcome what it sees as opposition from the “metropolitan Establishment.”

A new online tactical voting campaign also launched this week, catching voters’ attention.

MoveOn.org Man Helps Tony Blair's Election Campaign
Tories Plan To Beat ‘Bias’ By Bringing In Bloggers
Tax Relief Gets Centre Stage On Tory Blog
'Vote Swappers' Aim To Wipe Out Leading Conservatives In Internet Campaign

Posted by Buzz Webster at 12:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 31, 2005

Iranian Presidential Candiate/Blogger

Folks around the blogoshpere are starting to question if the first blogging President will be Iranian. Mostafa Moeen, a reformist party candidate running for president of Iran, is blogging to his peeps.

This blog could be about cooking recipies for all I know, but Hossein Derakhshan, a sound blogger who writes about technology and pop culture in Iran, has been paraphrasing what the site says.

Thanks Hossein, this is a pretty amazing evolution taking place.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 06:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

March 21, 2005

Presidential March Madness

It's never too early to run for President. Print out your own Presidential March Madness Brackets at SurveySaintLouis.com.

Hat tip to Steven Clift.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 10, 2005

Blogosphere And 04 Elections Report

I'm passing this on from the folks at BlogPulse

In case you haven't seen it yet, today's BlogPulse from Intelliseek features a fascinating paper released this week by Intelliseek/BlogPulse senior researcher Natalie Glance and HP Labs researcher Lada Adamic about the influence of liberal/conservative political bloggers on the political landscape during the 2004 U.S. Presidential election.

"The Political Blogosophere and the 2004 U.S. Election: Divided They Blog"
can be downloaded at http://www.blogpulse.com, and today's BlogPulse blog entry contains a summary of key findings.

I think you'll find some intriguing findings and insights in the research.

I haven't read the report yet, but hope to break it down soon and report back to the blog.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 12:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 07, 2005

The Internet And Campaign 2004

A new report “The Internet and Campaign 2004” was released Sunday by the PEW. There's a lot of great information in the report. Here’s a few of the highlights.

Findings include:
• The internet was a key force in politics last year as 75 million Americans used it to get news, discuss candidates in emails, and participate directly in the political process

• Television remained the dominant medium for most voters, but 18 percent said they got most of their political news from the Internet, compared with 17 percent who said they turned to the radio for their news.

• Nearly 60% of the campaign news seekers cited convenience as their main reason for using the Internet. But one-third said they did feel they got all the news and information they wanted from TV and newspapers.

• 52% of internet users, or about 63 million people, said they went online to get news or information about the 2004 elections. We call them online political news consumers.

• 35% of internet users, or about 43 million people, said they used email to discuss politics, and one of the most popular email subjects was jokes about the candidates and the election.

• 11% of internet users, or more than 13 million people, went online to engage directly in campaign activities such as donating money, volunteering, or learning about political events to attend.

In addition, in 2004:
• 31 million went online to find out how candidates were doing in opinion polls.

• 25 million used the internet to check the accuracy of claims made by or about the candidates.

• 19 million watched video clips about the candidates or the election.

• 17 million sent emails about the campaign to groups of family members or friends as part of listservs or discussion groups.

• 14 million signed up for email newsletters or other online alerts to get the latest news about politics.

• 7 million signed up to receive email from the presidential campaigns.

• 4 million signed up online for campaign volunteer activities such as helping to organize a rally, register voters, or get people to the polls on Election Day.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 10, 2005

British Labour Takes A Page From US Online Campaign Handbook

With an election expected in few month's time, the Labour Party of Britian has launched an online campaign against the Tories. In a recent email to online supporters, Labour officials promised an election campaign that "is going to be very different than any before it - in part thanks to the Internet".

Labour's first interactive initiative is the launch of campaign pledges by email on Friday.  Prime Minister Tony Blair will also take part by unveiling the Party's new pledges for a third term Labour Government to the public at events around the country, and online supporters are promisted to be among the first to get them.

Labour supporters can also text message or email questions to the Prime Minister that will be answered this weekend at the Party's annual Spring Conference.

Blair has promised to personally read and respond to every message... just kidding.

The Tories have also beefed up their online communications and are running an interactive "Are you thinking what we're thinking?" campaign through the Party website.

I'm thinking this is going to be a short but sweet web war.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 27, 2005

Iraq Election Online

Special Report

Internet Allows Inside Look At Iraq, But Aids Iraqis Little

The Internet is great for discussing the Iraqi election, unless of course you're an Iraqi

 

Interest High, Penetration Low

With the Iraqi election just days away, one might expect Iraqis to be surfing the Internet in search of the latest news and information on hopeful candidates. They're not. And although PoliticsOnline's Chief Iraqi researcher is on Holiday, we're pretty darn sure it's not just the failure to understand Arabic that draws us to this conclusion. It's not that Iraqis to do not wish to have an online voice or find more information, it just that with an Internet penetration of little more than 0.01% the nation is simply not connected. Even so, there are signs of a very fast acceptance.

 

Iraq Online - Internet Usage   Population                                  27,139,200 Internet Usage in Dec. 2000               12,500 Internet Usage in Sept. 2004              25,000 Use Growth (2000-2004)                       100% Internet Penetration (% Pop.)                 0.1%   Source: InternetWorld Stats

Astonishingly, a little more than five years ago ordinary Iraqis did not have even access to the Internet. Although Saddam Hussein's regime certainly censored the information on the Internet, the main reason is an UN-imposed trade sanction that made it impossible to import the necessary technical equipment.

 

At the turn of the 21st century the government began allowing Iraqis to go online through a state-run Internet Service Provider. The first Internet cafe opened in July 2000 where Iraqis could surf the web for about 25 US cents per session, according to Radio Netherlands. By 2003, there were around 60 cafes. And for the few Iraqis with disposable income, they could receive the Internet at home for about US $25 for three months, with an additional charge for each e-mail message. A locally built computer cost around US$600.

 

Two Sides To Iraq's Internet - The Positive

While very few Iraqis use the Internet, those who do have made a significant impact, both positive and negative. Iraq the Model is one such positive example, and is arguably the most widely known Iraqi weblog, according to the BBC.

 

The blog is ran by three Iraqi brothers who recently became the unlikely setting for a huge web spat after conspiracy theorists alleged the brothers were phony.  Though tangled up in false claims, the blogs popularity enabled two of the brothers, Omar and Mohammed, to attend a blogging conference at Harvard University in the US, and they even met President George W Bush. The online support has also encouraged the brothers to run for office, and even raise campaign funds online through their Party website.

 

“On the Internet, no one knows you're a Kurd. No one knows you're Shia or Sunni. No one knows your name or where you live. And in Iraq, that means no one can kill you or threaten you with any realistic menace for expressing a political opinion.   ” NewsDay Correspondent Matthew McAllester

It's a great story of politicians using the Internet to campaign, but it's most likely the only online Iraqi campaign story this election season. The online audience is so low Iraqi candidates are not using the Internet, and really do not have many other options to campaign apart from using traditional media outlets. Campaigning on foot is too dangerous. 

 

Newsday Iraq Correspondent Matthew McAllester writes, "the level of intimidation and intolerance for the opinion of others is so great that there is almost no public political discourse, even during the last days of the election campaign."

 

McAllester also notes that the debate is usually primitive for the Iraqis that do get involved in political discourse, suggesting that it's "partly because Iraqis have been given few solid issues to debate by their would-be leaders."

 

Though Iraqi blogs are small potatoes in the blogosphere, talk of the Iraqi election has been the topic de jour for many popular English language blogs for weeks. The online debate gives a clear indication that the world is very interested in the Iraqi elections. A look at the BBC's online coverage gives a glimpse of how curious the rest of the globe is about the elections. One popular new feature on the BBC website is a global E-survey on the Iraqi elections that has attracted thousands of respondents from all over the world. The tool allows visitors to take a survey in their own language (7 to chose from) with the ability to post comments throughout the series of questions. The survey results are then instantly available providing much more rich information than traditional surveys, with comparison features that break the survey down by age, region, sex, etc. Comments are also translated to every language. For example, an English speaker in Australia can not only know how Arabs responded to the survey, but also read his or her thoughts about the questioned asked.

Full Disclosure: PoliticsOnline developed the e-survey tools for the BBC in cooperation with a number of international partners. We proudly continue to develop and host these interactive tools for the BBC and other global media clients.

 

Iraq Blogs Discussing The Election   Iraqi Election Diatribes - A group blog discussing many aspects of the Iraqi Electoral System BBC Iraqi Election Log  - Election diary of people inside Iraq, including ordinary Iraqis, a U.S. officer and an American civilian contractor. Iraq The Model - Pro-U.S. view from Iraqi brothers who are optimistic at President Bush's vision for their country Free Iraqi - A Liberal Iraqi and not just a liberal living in Baghdad Iraqi Blogger Central - An American Looks at Iraq and the Iraqi Bloggers Informed Comment - Expertise in the nuances of Iraqi politics authored by Michigan University History Professor Juan Cole's War in Context - Posts a daily menu of vital news from the U.S. and international media on the conflict in Iraq Back to Iraq - TIME stringer Christopher Albritton provides an excellent daily diary of his life and work in Baghdad Baghdad Burning - Daily blog of a young Iraqi woman overjoyed to be free of Saddam Hussein but outraged by almost two years of occupation Dahr Jamail's Iraq Dispatches - Unembedded independent journalist with an interesting blog on Iraq Democracy In Iraq - A blog by an Iraqi on the future of Iraq, an Iraqi who is excited about a new democratic Iraq

It's A World Wide War - The Negative

Though most Iraqi citizens do not use the internet for news and information, terrorists and insurgents in the country are using it in an all out campaign to tell the world of the terror it will bring on Election Day.

 

Militants in hiding have been effective at using the web to broadcast messages they hope will be picked up by mainstream media. The latest instance took place on Tuesday when Militants in the Islamic Army in Iraq (a Sunni Muslim group which has killed several foreign hostages and claimed a number of attacks against U.S. and Iraqi targets) posted a statement on an Islamic website promising to intensify attacks and urged other insurgents to take hostages to disrupt the Jan. 30 poll. The statement was instantly amplified around the world, when it was broadcast on mainstream television and radio, according to the Turkish Daily.

 

A Soldiers Diary

As US soldiers' presence grows in Iraq, their presence also grows online. Blogs reporting from battle lines surged in popularity at the onset of the war, but dissident blogs are now capturing more attention. A growing number of US Iraq veterans are using the web to criticize the war efforts.

 

Operation Truth began with 5 members and now has 300 with an email list of 25,000 people, according to the New York Times. The group focuses on day-to-day issues affecting soldiers. The group conducted their most recent successful operation when Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld took questions from soldiers in Kuwait last month about equipment shortages. In response, the website's readers sent 3,400 email messages in 24 hours to members of Congress asking for hearings into the issue. Iraq Veterans Against the War is a similar group that started in July with 8 people and now has more than 150 members. Iraq Vet's are seeking a quick withdrawal from Iraq.

 

Military Blogs have often presented a problem for military brass because information posted in the online diaries could be used against them by insurgents, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.  The Pentagon allows blogging so long as authors do not disrupt discipline in their units, make statements on behalf of commanders or the Army as a whole, or reveal operational details that could aid attackers. If you don't believe the Pentagon is serious just ask Maj. Michael Cohen whose blog was shut down. Cohen, a doctor with the 67th Combat Support Hospital unit, had chronicled the bloody aftermath of the Dec. 21 mess-hall bombing in Mosul that killed 22. That account and 12 months of other postings on his Web log, www.67cshdocs.com, were replaced with a short notice: Levels above me have ordered, yes ORDERED, me to shut down this website.

 

Blogs revealing information is a concern for the safety of soldiers, but soldiers stepping over ethical boundaries is another concern. According to Australia's Herald Sun, the US Defense Department has been asked to investigate a website being used by American soldiers to post grisly pictures of Iraqi war dead. The name of the blog was not revealed.

 

A Historic Moment Captured Online

The historic election will be held in Iraq on January 30, 2005. Though, most Iraqis do not have the online elections resources provided to the rest of the world, it's probably not their greatest concern as some risk lifea nd limb just to take part in a free election. But regardless, if anything happens (good or bad) you can bet that it will be mentioned first on the web.

 

For the best online information on the Iraqi elections try these top sites offering election coverage:

• BBC
• Al Jazeera
• Yahoo

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Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 18, 2005

Vlogging The Norwegian Elections

Clark Boyd, Technology Correspondent for BBC World Service, passed on some interesting information I’m sure all you early adapters out there will love. I think its safe to say that a few Norwegian politicos fit into your category as well.

The Liberal Party in Norway will soon launch their campaign ahead of Parliamentary elections later this year.  They'll be using video weblogs -- I guess it's just the next evolutionary step, but it's a great example of new uses for blogs, etc. 

Boyd also does a radio show for WGBH Public Radio. Click here to listen to his vlogging report, in which he discusses Norway’s vlog idea with the tech consultant who’s setting up the vlogs for the politicos.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 08:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 14, 2005

An Ethical Issue For Campaign Consultants?

GUEST: Jack O'Toole

Former Dean campaign official Zephyr Teachout set off a bit of a firestorm in the blogosphere yesterday over matters ethical when she wrote that the Dean campaign originally hired popular lefty bloggers Markos Moulitsas Zúniga of Daily Kos and Jerome Armstrong of MYDD as consultants "largely in order to ensure that they said positive things about Dean. We paid them over twice as much as we paid two staffers of similar backgrounds, and they had several other clients. While they ended up also providing useful advice, the initial reason for our outreach was explicitly to buy their airtime. To be very clear, they never committed to supporting Dean for the payment -- but it was very clearly, internally, our goal." (Kos and Armstrong offer rather, uh, spirited responses here and here. And Teachout revises and extends here.)

Needless to say, the resulting uproar has been entertaining, if somewhat predictable, and you can follow it all by visiting this typically thorough roundup over at Memeorandum.

MORE: The Wall Street Journal weighs in on the story -- or nonstory, if you prefer -- here.

Posted by Jack O'Toole at 08:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 16, 2004

Iraq, Iran, Iblog

As far as I know, the upcoming Iraqi Elections will be the first time in world history when foreigners can legally give online donations to campaigns, possibly impacting the outcome.

There is a lot to be said about this, but for now I’ll leave you with the latest pulled from James Taranto’s Best of the Web:

Cole Cash
A blogger called Juan Cole has declared a jihad against the Ali brothers, who run the pro-democracy Iraq the Model blog. (For more about them, read Daniel Henninger's Friday column, which describes their visit to The Wall Street Journal last week.) Cole claims the Alis "are far out of the mainstream of Iraqi opinion," and he endorses instead an anonymous anti-American blogress who uses the handle "Riverbend."

Relying on a zany conspiracy-mongering post from an unknown blog with an appealing name, Cole engages in some fevered speculation:

The MR posting brings up questions about the Iraqi brothers who run the IraqTheModel site. It points out that the views of the brothers are celebrated in the right-leaning weblogging world of the US, even though opinion polling shows that their views are far out of the mainstream of Iraqi opinion. It notes that their choice of internet service provider, in Abilene, Texas, is rather suspicious, and wonders whether they are getting some extra support from certain quarters. . . .

The phenomenon of blog trolling, and frankly of blog agents provocateurs secretly working for a particular group or goal and deliberately attempting to spread disinformation, is likely to grow in importance. It is a technique made for the well-funded Neoconservatives, for instance, and I have my suspicions about one or two sites out there already.

This has set off quite a kerfuffle, with blogger Jeff Jarvis calling Cole "pond scum." We're not sure about that (though Jarvis makes a pretty compelling case), but what we do know is that Cole is far out of the mainstream of American opinion, as evidenced by the result of last month's election. Cole might want to look into whether he himself is getting some extra support from certain quarters.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 08, 2004

E-lection Analysis Coming Soon

There is a lot of important analysis on the Internet’s impact on the 2004 elections that will be coming out in the next few weeks. PoliticsOnline will post it’s own report in the next few days. But for now:

- The most important post election analysis is questioning the religious conservatives or the religiously online right had more impact. So far the religious right option seems most probable.

- Have you heard the new Yahoo! ad with Howard Dean? It’s a scream.

- Arlen Specter is in the Hot Seat as Republican’s hope to oust the Republican. The folks at the new website NotSpecter.com think of him as a RINO (Republican In Name Only).

- Even if the U.S. adopts Internet voting in 2008, it will still be atleast two years behind many European Countries. E-stonia, one of the newest EU members, will vote online next year.

- Then again what’s all the hurry with online voting and other government e-advocacy considering a new World Bank report estimates that as high as 85 per cent of e-government projects in developing countries are either "total or partial failures."

- And in case your in Washington after Thanksgiving - E-Voter Institute Research Roundtable -- The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: How Effective was the Internet in Election 2004?  November 30, 2004, Four Seasons Hotel in Washington, D.C.  Click to register.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 06:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 05, 2004

Post Election Modernism

I’m so sick of reading ‘blogger blew it’ articles I’m going to puke.

- For a Post-Election Humor Roundup, check out editorial cartoons, late-night jokes, "Daily Show" video clips, Letterman top 10 lists, and other humor about Bush's election victory at about.com.

- In case you still feel the election and not the exit polls was rigged, a new report by the polling system’s architects says there were a number of problems that led to the early erroneous impression that John Kerry was heading for victory.

- Two of the best ePolitics events of the year will be held in December, and they are both FREE.

Online Campaigning: Lessons The UK Can Learn From Internet Use In US Elections will be held on December 7^th in London, and Votes, Bits & Bytes  December 9-11^th at Harvard. Our very own Phil Noble will be speaking at the former.

- E-voting machines are still in the clear, but politicians say it will be years, if ever, before electors can use the Internet to vote.

- And just in the nick of time Oslo cops have shut down a 'Kill Bush' website. The site (killhim.nu) urged Norwegians to put a bounty on the head of president Bush.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 04, 2004

Loose Ends: ePolitics Buzz Brief

- Bloggers are still taking heat for being off the mark. While mainstream refuses to admit they’re the reason for bloggers being off the mark.

- E-voting machines were deemed a ‘success’, but there’s chatter among bloggers that the exit polls were right and the machines were rigged.

- MoveOn.org’s PAC endorsed 27 candidates for House or Senate in Tuesday's election. By James Taranto’s count, five won. That's not good for them.

- A Bush ‘Thank you’ email almost went out the day after he won, with many receiving emails around 11:55pm on Wednesday. A Kerry ‘Thank you’ email went out less than two hours after his concession speech.

- And since we’re always thinking ahead, paid search, mapping and wireless messaging will probably be the next big Internet tools in 2006.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 03, 2004

Youth Vote Does Not Add Up

I thought the Youth Vote and the Internet went together like peas and carrots. I was really excited about young voter turnout. It appears all the hype was for nothing; it’s just like what happened with Dean in Iowa during the primaries. Everyone waited for the youth vote powered by the Dean machine.... and waited... and nothing.

How can Declare Yourself, a group that was instrumental in getting young people registered, come out with a release so late in the afternoon that begins like this:

Defying predictions of youth apathy, more than half of eligible young voters (51.6%) showed up at the polls yesterday, according to data compiled by the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), obtained by national exit polls.

In reality it went more like this from SFGate:
Fewer than one in 10 voters Tuesday were 18 to 24, about the same proportion of the electorate as in 2000, exit polls indicated. Still, with voter turnout expected to be higher overall, more young people appeared to have come out.

Meanwhile Rock the Vote Rock the Vote is keeping track of how many young people voted and why you voted.

That should take all but about 5 minutes considering the poor turnout.

Confused...

Posted by Buzz Webster at 06:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Morning After: ePolitics Buzz Brief

Congratulations! If you're reading this you're still alive, but possibly feeling a little weird like it was a Y2K Armageddon all over again. Computers did not freeze up, explode or send the world into chaos. But, a lot of things did happen on the web in the last 24 hours. Oh yes, and about those e-voting machines.

- Thank you mainstream media for saying bloggers screwed up and gave out inaccurate reports. Some really did. But, I’d just like to remind everyone that many bloggers 'botched' information came from guess who? Mainstream media.

- E-voting was smooth in Maryland but not other regions that were predicting problems. Parts of Florida, Philadelphia, and New Orleans were among the 600 reported glitches. Washingtonpost.com writes that the massive experiment "looks like a success."

- There was a huge surge in web traffic to blogs and especially campaign sites in the final days. JohnKerry.com and GeorgeWBush.com attracted more than 300,000 US visitors on Monday 1 November.

- It looks like Bush won, but votes in Ohio need to be recounted before its official. I think Drudge was the first to call it for Bush around 3:00am this morning.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 02, 2004

Bush Leads In Electoral College

Electoral votes, from C-SPAN: Bush: 170, Kerry: 112.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Questioning Exit Polls

There's a growing concensus that the exit poll numbers floating around aren't accurate. Although no one ever said they were, I'm having trouble believing what's going on here.

We need to remember that at best these are the same sources that gave the country a 'Gore wins' embarrassment in 2000.

Regardless, I'll probably keep posting whatever I find when it becomes available.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 06:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Bloggers Affect More Than Polls

How about this headline from Bloomberg?

Kerry Overtakes Bush In Online Futures After Exit Poll Reports

Traders reversed bets that George W. Bush would win the U.S. presidential election after Web sites posted what they said were exit polls showing John Kerry leading in battleground states including Florida and Ohio.

Who would of thought political bloggers would impact elections...and world economics?

Posted by Buzz Webster at 06:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Zogby Website Shows Kerry Up

From Zogby:
Our Call: Zogby International's 2004 Predictions
(as of Nov. 2, 2004 5:00pm)

2004 Presidential Election
Electoral Votes:

Bush
213

Kerry
311

Too Close To Call
Nevada (5)

Too Close To Call
Colorado (9)

Zogby was most accurate in 2000.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

4:30 Exits Via The Web

From Wonkette: Getting confused yet? Don't get confused; get out the vote.

FL: 52/48 - KERRY
OH: 52/47 - KERRY
MI: 51/48 - KERRY
PA: 58/42 - KERRY
IA: 50/48 - KERRY
WI: 53/47 - KERRY
MN: 57/42 - KERRY
NH: 58/41 - KERRY
ME: 55/44 - KERRY

NM: 49/49 - TIE

NV: 48/49 - BUSH
CO: 49/50 - BUSH
AR: 45/54 - BUSH
NC: 47/53 - BUSH

Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

TV Stays Silent, Web Blasts Results

From MyDD as of 2pm EST-

Early VNS exit polling
by Jerome Armstrong

Here is some of the early VNS data, fwiw:

---- AZ--CO--LA--PA--OH--FL--MI--NM--MN--WI--IA--NH
Kerry 45--48--42--60--52--51--51--50--58---52--49--57
Bush 55--51--57--40---48--48--47--48--40--43--49--41

Now, mind that these are early numbers. And even if correct, they reflect the ones most wanting to vote, and it's still a long way to go... but wow, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire & Minnesota voters can't wait to boot Bush!

Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Drudge, EVOTE.com Exit Poll Postings

In regards to the previous post, our Editor actually received a quick response from EVOTE.com on their exit poll sources.

From: Laura [xxxxx@ideacast.com]

To: "David Abel"

Cc:

Subject: RE: exit polls

Hello David, hope you’re having a blast today! We’re getting our numbers from various newsroom media sources who are feeding them to us – the same way Drudge is getting them.

EVOTE.com is actually consistent with Drudge. And for where Drudge is getting results: http://www.exit-poll.net/pool.html.

It's nothing unusual if the page doesn't open. It appears all the traffic has knocked it offline.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 03:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Exit Poll Update?

From EVOTE.COM website/email:

EXIT POLL UPDATE:

* Kerry leads New mexico by one point as of Noon.
* Kerry leads Iowa by two points as of 11AM.
* Kerry ahead enough in New Hampshire to claim the state.
* Kerry leads in Ohio, 49 to 45.
* Kerry leads in Florida, 49 to 48.
* Very high turnout -- approaching 60% nationally (10% higher than 2000).

Overall, Kerry is competitive everywhere -- confirming polling that
showed a very close race leading into today.

Where is EVOTE.com getting this information? I am very curious to know the source, but they have yet to cite this information.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 02:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

What Do The Results Say?

Today is election day. If you're like me, you'll be anxious to see
the returns. It looks as close as the 2000 election.

All of the major news networks (ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox, NBC, etc.) will
have up-to-the-minute updates on returns.

If the race is particularly close, we may not have an immediate answer.
Whatever the outcome is, I hope you went to the polls and cast a vote!

Here are a couple sites where you can get election results:
USAelectionAtlas
NY Times

Post sent in by Contributing Editor Bob Pyke

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 01, 2004

Get-Out-The-Electoral-Vote

It all comes down the electoral votes whether you like it or not. Electoral vote prediction websites have been hot this year, with electoral-vote.com among the most popular. The projection works by amassing daily data from statewide polls to predict the White House’s next occupant.

The Washington Post also has an electoral vote map, which basically tabulates data the same way.

While both are great, a Princeton electoral vote map might be the most accurate based on the way it collects data.

Currently all three maps slightly favor Kerry, but there is still too much up for grabs.

Also Jonathan Dube at Poynter online put together a nice article on election quick links to “make sure you've got everything you need to compare results to past elections and explain the unexpected on election night ... and beyond.”

And finally, to find your polling place, learn on what type of machine you will cast your vote and get instructions on how to use that machine go to www.mypollingplace.com.

Be prepared for slow load times. This is politically one of the three busiest days of the year.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 28, 2004

View From The Sunshine State

Contributing Editor Peter Bearse reports from Florida:

Florida is having enough serious problems trying to implement the early voting feature enabled by changes in its election laws in response to the chaos of the 2000 election. I can't imagine them yet implementing e-voting even if it were enabled by law.

There are long lines and hours of waiting, day after day at every polling place, as hundreds of thousands of people try to vote early. There's also a deluge of absentee votes overwhelming county supervisors of elections and their workers. There are already -- pre-Nov.2nd! -- thousands of complaints about voting eligibility, voting procedures and actions at the polls, and several lawsuits have already been filed. The vitriol and lack of basic courtesy of some of the Democrats demonstrating near the polling stations, heard on the basis of second hand reports from Republican friends who have worked at the polls, is hard to believe.

It's also worth mentioning that Internet connectivity is important to those working at party / campaign headquarters for the sake of being able to do a number of things -- rapidly exchange information among local units, find out where there are shortages of volunteers and campaign materials and how to trade, loan, exchange or otherwise fill the gaps, provide rapid response to problems at polling places, etc.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 09:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 27, 2004

History Campaign Ads

Did you know Bush senior used TV ads to define Clinton as a flip-flopper? The word wasn't actually used, but the idea was the same as the Bush Jr. defining Kerry effort.

How did I know that?

A group of us at Michigan State have created an innovative online learning environment that features campaign ads and historical clips from 1952 to 2004.

The site is available at http://www.easehistory.org/

EASE History Campaign Ads uses presidential ads as entry points to learn about learn about campaign issues and their historical context, as well as the persuasive techniques and strategies that are part of political campaigns.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 02:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 25, 2004

Bush VS Kerry: ePolitics Buzz Brief

8 days to go and BC’04 seems to be coming on strong online.

- For some laughs - Political Bohemian Rhapsody. Another funny online animation making fun of both candidates set to the tune of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Just like JibJab?

- The BC’04 website is chatting it up with some all-star chats this week, among them the Bush daughters.

- BC'04 senior advisor and strategist Tucker Eskew has also started a blog TuckerEskew.com.

- The RNC is going mobile with - Election Mobile Alters. Election Day alters will be sent to your phone

- There is an email circulating that John Edwards is personally responsible for the flu vaccine shortage in the U.S.

- SaveAmericanMedicine.com also has a bone to pick with Edwards

- Meanwhile Kerry is enlisting the support of former President Bill Clinton for emails and appearances.

This may see one-sided, but the simple fact is that Bush won on the web-buzz-o-meter today. However some anti-Bush websites did get some traffic worth noting, including the 7 Bush Cousins who Launched a Pro-Kerry Website.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 06:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 21, 2004

Decision 2004 Is Down To Three Choices

Somewhere in America a blogger woke up this morning knowing he would soon have to make a decision that might eventually decide the fate of his country. With all the chaos in the world it’s not an easy decision; but he, like millions of others, basically has only three choices. Will he choose a rightwing corporate, a middle of the road advocate that “looks out for you”, or a comical looking guy with good hair?

That blogger has a duty like millions of other Americans, and today his decision was not an easy one. Bless the poor man’s heart for I know he labored over his decision... when he chose to write about Sinclair, Bill O’Reilly, or Jon Stewart.

It’s a hard decision, but freedom of choice is what makes the United States so great. Do America proud and blog on patriots!

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 14, 2004

Internet Helps Foreigners Influence US Elections

This is the first I’ve seen of the globalization of citizens’ activism in other countries to impact the U.S. elections in a significant way.

In the last few days the U.K.'s Guardian has been setting up Operation Clark County. It is a way for U.K. citizens to have an impact in the U.S. presidential elections.

By typing your email address into the box on this page, you will receive the name and address of a voter in Clark County, Ohio. You may not have heard of it, but it's one of the most marginal areas in one of the most marginal states: at the last election, just 324 votes separated Democrats from Republicans. It's a place where a change of mind among just a few voters could make a real difference.

For another example take a look at this story on Norwegian citizens buying adds in US media against Bush.

The Norwegian site in English.

I am in search of pro-Bush examples, but so far all the cases I've found seem to be anti-Bush.

Also check out The World Votes.

More to come...

Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Debate Recap, Indymedia Ticked

Debate Quotes - I love this stuff.
Bush campaign email: “President Bush won a clear victory on substance, style and credibility in the final debate tonight - showing that he's the candidate who ‘finishes strong.’”
Kerry campaign email: “Once again, I am about to head over to the "spin room," and once again I am going to have the chance to talk about a victory for John Kerry.”

To watch the full debate Click Here.

For complete coverage of the debate visit E-Vote.com’s Debate Briefing.

Was the FBI seizure of Indymedia computers in the U.K. election related? The servers have been returned but Indymedia is still P.O.’ed and questions remain.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 06, 2004

Online Polls Flooded after VP Debate

Not that they scientifically matter but online polls asking who won were once again besieged tonight by Dems - largely because of an email to activists and online ads.

Both the Akron Beacon Journal (Ohio.com) and The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philly.com) online polls with similar links were inaccessable at this time.

CNN.com switched its online polls from "Who won?" to "Did the VP Debate sway your vote?" at this point.

Online polls certainly are not an accurate measure of who won the debate, but it is a sure sign of online activism. Maybe not the most effective...now only if the campaigns could only raise money by click-throughs!

Also saw Edwards vs. Cheney post debate online ads by the DNC on Washington Post, CNN, and National Journal.com - Saw one RNC fundraising ad on Fox News. There was a George Soros ad too. Let us know if you saw any others.

Posted by Real Deal at 12:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 05, 2004

Debates: Online Ads & Spin

After the debates, the tactics to control the online spin not only involved cranking up online polls and flooding news programs' inboxes, but it also spilled over to some pretty large online ad buys.

Click here to read.

Posted by Real Deal at 02:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 01, 2004

Debate Recap: ePolitcs Buzz Brief

- Online Political Humor might be just as popular as online analysis of the debate according to an AP article.

- The New York Times' interactive analysis of the debate is probably the best freely available on the web.

- Liberal Bloggers say Conservative Blogggers say Bush Sucked. Go figure.

- A CNN article writes “the Bush and Kerry camps have set rapid response teams to spin the debates over the Web as they happen and in the media frenzy afterward.” I haven’t seen the RR yet, maybe because nothing shocking came out of the debate except that Kerry came out the winner among Uncommitted Voters in an online CBS News poll.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 28, 2004

Political Blog-Spotting

Political Bloggers are hot commodities these days. The most recent news is that the potty-mouthed pundit Wonkette is set to keynote the second day of the annual conference of the Online News Association on Nov. 12 and 13 in Hollywood, Calif. The Wonkette.com blog author will speak ahead of an afternoon panel debating the role of the Internet in the presidential election.

It should be no surprise that all the panelists are bloggers too. Panelists will include Joe Trippi, Arianna Huffington, Slate's Mickey Kaus and Harvard's Dave Winer.

In other blogger-spotting news, Guardian Unlimited of the U.K. confirmed it has signed up two of the U.S. leading political bloggers to each write a weekly column in the run-up to the U.S. presidential election. Right-wing Glenn Reynolds of Instapundit and Left-wing Markos Moulitsas of Daily Kos will be added to Guardian Unlimited's coverage of the election. More

I’m still waiting for a phone call.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 16, 2004

Hurricane Betty Bounces Out Of Florida

At first tropical storm Betty Castor hovered undetected under my e-dar. I thought she was just another passing storm hoping to reach the senate and replace Bob Graham representing Florida.

I was wrong. Betty Castor is now a full-fledged category 5 hurricane.

Category 1 - you have a website, most likely maintained by a relative or someone under 19

Category 2 - you have a website and newsletter that people actually read

Category 3 - your online communications are popular among supporters and actually raises some money

Category 4 - you have a paid tech staff and the ability to not only raise money, but also mobilize people to take action

Category 5 - your online communications are so good your opponents copy you, while your online reach is national with the ability to raise over six figures

Off The Chart - you have a link to BuzzWebster on your blog or homepage

To explain, in the past few weeks Betty has been the subject of e-newsletter campaigns for the online PAC’s of Howard Dean, Hillary Clinton, MoveOn and the New Democrat Network.

You know your popular when your name shows up in email boxes more than Viagra.

Betty built up to this category by snagging Larry Biddle as her deputy campaign manager. Biddle was deputy national finance director for Howard Dean's presidential campaign. Need I say more?

I can’t. I don’t know much else than that, but for various reasons the seat she wants has interested some very big names in the online fundraising world.

Her opponent is former HUD Secretary Mel Martinez.

News on $ numbers and are developing...

Posted by Buzz Webster at 01:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 18, 2004

Flip-Flops and Anarchy: P&I Buzz Brief

Here's what's happening today:
- Senate hopeful Republican Alan Keyes is looking for $ outside of Illinois using the services of conservative online newsletters.

- Bush-Cheney’04 has a new Olympian inspired game on the web called John Kerry Flip Flop Olympics.

- Anti-Bush hackers and Internet dissidents are boldly talking about how they plan to disrupt the RNC convention.

- Kerry’s biggest bounce was online after the convention according to his web traffic stats and two polls (1, 2).

- Maldives is the latest hotspot for cyber-dissident persecution where protesters allegedly have been tortured and imprisoned.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 04, 2004

Kerry's Cool 5 Million

Now that the Convention is over and everyone has had a chance to deal with the elevated terror alert, let's back track to one of the greatest milestones in internet and politics that took place last week.

According to the Kerry campaign, the candidate raised more than $5 million in online donations last Thursday, the day Kerry accepted the nomination.

That's 5 times much as John McCain did in 2000 and 1.5 times as much as Kerry did on the last day of the filing period in June.

To put it another way, in a single day online -- Kerry raised almost 3% of his total $185 million since January. You can tell Howard Dean that's something to scream about.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 27, 2004

The First Black President?

That's the buzz.

Barack Obama, a state senator from Illinois who is running for the U.S. Senate was the star speaker tonight.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

July 14, 2004

Kerry Gets Unwanted E-mail From Bush

Bush Campaign manager Ken Mehlman sent out an email last night to the Kerry campaign in which he just so happened to "CC" 6 million Bush supporters.

The email, or "open letter", calls for the Kerry campaign "to release the performance that Sen. Kerry said represented the "heart and soul" of America so that all Americans could see for themselves what John Kerry thinks represents the "heart and soul" of our country."

Translation: some real bad stuff was said and we want to use it against you.

By now you have heard that some extreme Bush bashing was going on at the Radio City Music Hall Kerry/Edwards event the other night, where Bush was referred to as a "Killer" and "Thug", and of course Whoopi couldn't help but recognize the similarity between the president's last name and female genitalia.

Come on Whoopi. Did you not learn anything from Sister Act 1 or 2?

Wow, smart strategy by the Bush camp. This my friends is a real pickle for the Kerry folks...

Posted by Buzz Webster at 01:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 28, 2004

I Love Tech More Than You

Much to the enjoyment of Silicon Valley, both Bush and Kerry are sucking up to the tech world.

In a recent top-secret debate held 10 miles below the earth at Bill Gates' "Fallout pad" Kerry was heard telling Bush, "I love tech more than you do."

To which Bush replied, "No you don't," followed by 37 consecutive:
Kerry - "Yes, I do"
Bush - "No, you don't"

The moment climaxed with Kerry saying, "Shut up, big dummy head."
Bush quickly countered with, "I know you are, but what am I?"

The debate grew so intense Steve Jobs had to separate the two men by cajoling each of with a Mac running the new Tiger OS and a free Gmail email account to play with.

Kerry and Bush then apologized and promised to personally invest 1 billion of their inheritance money in risky tech stocks.

The above story is not true. Gates would never invite Jobs to his secret pad.
For real news on why both candidates might be good for the future of tech visit the following:
Bush, Kerry Lay Out Tech Initiatives
Bush Vs. Kerry On Tech

Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 23, 2004

Canadian Election Special Report

The good folks at PoliticsOnline have just posted a special report on the impact of the internet in the Canadian Elections. I think it's pretty good, but then again I'm partial to my Editor.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 03:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 22, 2004

It's All About Dean

It will be exactly one year ago tomorrow, that Howard Dean graced the stage in Burlington Vermont leading 5,000 plus deaniacs in a "Declaration Celebration" that many thought would turn the Democratic Party on its head.

So, tomorrow one year later after the fan-fare, Dean will try to excite his email supporters into believing that the Revolution is still going on, it's just day two.

My birthday is tomorrow and if Dean puts you in the donating mood, well...

Also more Dean related news popped up today about Unions going virtual with a new website called PurpleOcean.org.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 02:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 15, 2004

Kerryopoly Vs. Contractopoly

A few weeks ago I told you about Kerryopoly and hoped to see some more humorous jabs from the left and right. Well, today jab came one from the left in the form of Contractopoly. The new game by the Center for American Progress allows you to stroll down game board lane with to "win billions in sweetheart deals from the Bush Administration as you rebuild Iraq."

Not as funny as Kerryopoly but a lot better design.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 09:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 01, 2004

Canadian Elections: Wired And Wacky

Well, Canada’s online election frenzy is exploding like bloated road kill in the hot sun. Its everywhere, even leaking across borders into U.S. press.

You know it has to be juicy if its taking news time away from the "WMD, Iraqi, Don’t Blame Me" election politics going on in the U.S. of A.

Look for a PoliticsOnline special report in a week to give you the low down. If you can't wait until then, take a look at this.
Canada's Federal Race Starts With Online Campaigning

Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 31, 2004

Memorial Day

For those of you in the US, I hope you pulled your eyeballs away from the monitor long enough to remember the many men and women that have served your country who gave the ultimate sacrifice.

For those of you outside the US: To learn more about Memorial Day go here.

Buzz is off today, but just came in to post this and make sure my 1,000+ emails aren't reeking havoc on the network.

Posted by Buzz Webster at 08:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 21, 2004

Don't Discount Bush's Online Fundraising

Can you believe the U.S. presidential candidates and other interested parties have already blown through a cool billion running for the White House? I thought Mike Tyson could spend some cash, but these guys are ridiculous. Could Don King be at the center of a real conspiracy theory? First, he was Tyson’s manager and now he’s fighting for Republican’s who are following Tyson's lead of spending like there’s no tomorrow. Think about it.

Of course the big Internet news is that Kerry has raised over $35 million online, setting records that even the “internet candidate” Howard Dean couldn’t reach. That’s great for Kerry but don’t write off BushCheney04’s online fundraising prowess just yet.

Here’s why: Right now Kerry might be able to raise online bucks better than Bush, but Bush hasn’t really tried. Bush is sitting on 6 million emails that he has yet to push for money like his Democratic opponents have. How much money can Bush raise online? A last minute drive could raise 20-25 million in one week. Could Kerry do the same? Yes and No. Kerry and his former Democratic opponents have been exhausting their small donor base for over a year, which makes them less likely to give. Kerry would have to expand his supporter base, but all Bush has to do is ask from current supporters that are likely to give but haven’t been pushed hard to do so..

[Insider Alert: So what can Kerry do to raise more money? A source close to the Kerry campaign told me that it might be smart for Kerry to delay accepting the nomination past the DNC convention. But, my guess is that neither delegates nor voters want him to wait, and the outcry would be too strong for him to follow through with it. ]

Also watch out for these late bloomers to help add big bucks to the online money making madness:
-- Republican 527's
-- Wealthy Republican "George Soros" type individuals
-- NRA's new online media company and copycats

Posted by Buzz Webster at 09:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 18, 2004

Dean Bats For Kerry

I was going through my usual 500 daily political spam emails this morning when I came across one from John Kerry that made my chin do one of those "hit the floor with the tongue roll out” maneuvers like I saw on a Sponge Bob cartoon this morning. After reeling my tongue back in I still couldn't believe what I was seeing. Dean's bat, the sacred online moneymaker and mascot of his campaign, was in a John Kerry uniform.

We all knew Dean was batting for Kerry after the Internet candidate lost his own chances, but wow, that's real commitment.

Dean hope's to help Kerry raise $500K online in one day as part of a $10 million in May fundraising marathon.

[Insider Alert: Buzz was recently tipped that Dean’s For America’s next effort will be an online petition next week to tell get states to require a paper trail for electronic voting machines used in November.]

Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)