Politics

The Multimedia Election

by Sheldon Rampton — October 17, 2004 - 11:00pm

"Hardly a day goes by without someone sending me a link to a video, Flash animation, or MP3 file related to the U.S. political campaign," obsserves Steve Yelvington. "It's the first time that multimedia files have been so thoroughly woven through the national political conversation. JibJab's hilarious animations, "This Land" and "Good to Be in D.C.," have been widely covered, but there's much more.

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Poynter online, October 18, 2004

Knocking Rock the Vote

by Diane Farsetta — October 13, 2004 - 11:00pm

After the Los Angeles Times reported on the youth voter registration organization Rock the Vote's asking whether the draft could be reinstituted "if the situation doesn't improve," Republican National Committee chair

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Rock the Vote, October 14, 2004

Exporting U.S. Spin Down Under

by Diane Farsetta — October 7, 2004 - 11:00pm

Australia's October 9 national election might sound familiar to Americans -- the two major party candidates are running neck and neck, Iraq is a major issue, and U.S. political consultants are shaping the campaigns. "Campaign operatives from across the spectrum of Australian politics head to Washington every year to learn how to manage budgets, articulate messages, and develop poll-driven communication strategies.

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Christian Science Monitor, October 8, 2004

Bloggers Shape the Post-Debate Debate

by Sheldon Rampton — October 6, 2004 - 11:32am

Markos Moulitsas of the Daily Kos weblog has written an insightful article about how bloggers helped turn the perception of first election debate in favor of John Kerry. "Bloggers, thinktanks, the Kerry campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) all worked to fact-check Bush and point out his bizarre behaviour," he writes. "The flow of information flowed two ways, as the party establishment and allied organisations worked hand-in-hand with the blogs to gather ammunition, then blast it out to the world.

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Guardian (UK), October 5, 2004

Fear And The Undecided Voter

by Laura Miller — October 4, 2004 - 11:00pm

"For all the policy differences it revealed, the presidential debate last week also highlighted what has become a predominant theme in this presidential campaign: fear," the New York Times reports. "President Bush implied that Senator John Kerry's 'mixed message' on Iraq would only encourage the enemy. Mr. Kerry warned that Mr. Bush's 'certainty' could needlessly extend a bloody occupation.
Each side hopes that fear of a future shaped by the opposing candidate will help win over undecided voters.

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New York Times, October 5, 2004

Tuning in to the Void

by Diane Farsetta — October 3, 2004 - 11:00pm

The Wisconsin Advertising Project estimates that "many voters - nearly 60 percent - have not been exposed to any of the 530,000 campaign ads aired so far in the most expensive presidential campaign ever." A companion project researching local TV news "found only 44 percent of local stations offer[ed] any campaign coverage at all in the 2002 elections.

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New York Times, October 4, 2004

Scenes from Spin Alley

by Sheldon Rampton — October 2, 2004 - 2:28am

Notwithstanding efforts to put a Bush spin on Thursday's presidential debate, several opinion polls agree that John Kerry beat George Bush in Thursday's presidential debate.

The John Kerry Attack Matrix

by Sheldon Rampton — September 29, 2004 - 11:00pm

In some respects, the real presidential debate will take place in cyberspace, reports Wired magazine. "The Bush campaign has launched a massive rapid-response effort called Debate Facts to rebut challenger John Kerry's assertions during the debates," writes Louise Witt. "The campaign will provide a live feed to about 5,000 conservative blogs that subscribe to its news alerts.

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Wired, September 30, 2004

Poll Dance

by Sheldon Rampton — September 27, 2004 - 11:00pm

After MoveOn.org accused the Gallup polling firm of using a survey methodology that stacks the deck in favor of Republicans, CNN (which uses Gallup) responded with a news segment that "implicitly confirmed a criticism of itself that was leveled in the MoveOn ad: the charge that CNN winds up 'acting as unquestioning promotional partners [with Gallup], rather than as critical journalists.'" Gallup's polls have shown a substantial lead for Bush, but other recent pol

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CJR Campaign Desk, September 28, 2004

Gearing Up for the Post-Debate Debate

by Sheldon Rampton — September 27, 2004 - 11:00pm

"If 2000 was any indication," writes Joshua Micah Marshall, the winner of this week's presidential campaign debate "won't be determined during the 90 minute encounter itself but during the spin war that will follow it. And with the advantage the Republicans have on the cable nets, talk radio and chat TV shows, the odds are stacked in their favor." In 2000, the initial public reactions to the first Bush/Gore debate had Gore coming out on top. "It was only after several days of pundit churn that Bush became the winner," Marshall notes.

Main Source: 
Talking Points Memo, September 28, 2004
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