More and more people are becoming Internet savvy. The Internet is used so much in everyday life that it is impossible to not be bombarded with news stories and ads as soon as one logs on. When election times come around, all viewers see when logging on to the Internet are stories about politicians. In fact, according to a 2008 article, The Internet Gains in Politics, "Nearly a quarter of Americans (24%) say they regularly learn something about the campaign from the Internet, almost double the percentage from a comparable point in the 2004 campaign (13%)" (http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2008/The-Internet-Gains-in-Politics.aspx). This just continues to prove that the Internet is becoming used more and more often for various activities. The Internet is used by all age groups which helps get the younger generation more involved in the elections. Users can now post questions and answer as well as keep up to date information on what is happening in the elections.
To make things more interesting, there are new and different sites available. With all the new sites out there such as YouTube and Twitter, these news stories take on new meanings. Now, not only are the articles in black and white words, but there are videos and pictures to back them up. When it comes to elections and campaigns, they are now taking on new meanings. For those who are trying to video tape the good of one politician and the bad of another, YouTube is the perfect place to post those videos. If someone follows his favorite politician around taping all the good that the politician does, he will then he able to post it on YouTube for everyone to see. The same goes for the opposite, if you despise a politician and follow him around long enough, he is bound to do something inappropriate. This can also be posted on YouTube. These videos are going to affect the way the public votes based on what the videos show. Videos can also be altered to make scenarios look worse than they really are. However, either way they are viewed, the votes will be affected. YouTube can also be used to post ads about politicians. Television ads have certain restrictions on them where Internet posts on YouTube do not. Anyone can post on YouTube and therefore there will be more and more campaigning done on-line as opposed to on the computer.
Twitter also allows politicians to post their points-of-view. They will be able to tell things the way they want them told. Fans will be able to follow their favorite politicians to find out what they are doing. It will make the fans feel more connected to and more apt to vote for the politician of their liking. Fans will be able to show their support for their favorite politicians and help to persuade others to vote for their favorite. Twitter will keep users up to date on everything that is happening.
Election campaigning uses everything possible in order to make the biggest impression. It does not matter if the elections are local, state, or federal. Either way, the Internet will have an impact. This may be as simple as keeping the public informed. However, even more so the Internet is used to bring the opponent down while bringing another politician up. No matter what the outcome of the election, it is guaranteed that the Internet had some affect on the outcome.
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