 The Political Internet Boom
First Published: May 2004
Last Update: May 2004
Author: Greg Henderson
Politicians have found the Internet:
Though the Internet is nowhere near a new phenomenon, in the world of politics
it is a new area. While there were political organization web sites and campaign
websites in the mid 1990s they were poorly marketed and poorly designed. As
a result of all this during the Internet boom of the mid 90s political sites
were mostly left out of the fun. However there has been a new focus in the world
of politics that is slowly shifting toward the Internet as a main form of communication,
for what it is worth the Internet boom for politics is beginning now.
So why such a delay one might ask? Well this is simple, what goes on in the
public sector has always lagged behind that of the private sector. There are
millions of examples of this, things such as the use of television in campaigns,
the formation of labor unions for federal workers, the means of main transportation
for government officials, the list could go on forever, this is just another
example of it happening.
The Internet makes low budget advocacy possible:
This is why when the idea of Common America came about there was no question
in my mind that I would start off using the Internet. As a long time web designer
I am able to get a jump on the emerging Internet boom of politics. This allows
me to reach more people and have more influence over policies, while at the
same time having far less overhead than my Washington office competition. While
the boom is in its infancy the office based organizations do hold a slight edge,
but with the boom picking up momentum the tide is quickly going to turn, those
without a large internet presence are going to be left out.
Fund raising and elector interest both up:
So what has the Internet boom of politics done so far for political organizations
and candidates? This being the first presidential election year that the Internet
has played a major role in politics it is easy to see results already. The first
result is in campaign fund raising. With new campaign finance laws it forces
candidates to reach a broader group of individuals to raise money. Already campaign
fund raising records are being broken. In the case of the Howard Dean campaign
he raised the vast majority of his money via the Internet, and his pre-primary
fund raising totals were more than any other Democrat candidate because he used
the Internet.
The second, and likely the most profound, result is that of the impact it has
on the people. This election year (2004) polls are showing far higher political
interest than any election year in recent history at this point in the campaign
season. This is because more people can be reached and it is easier for ideas
to spread because of the Internet. More involvement and familiarity with platforms
equals higher interest levels.
Because of all this people become more involved in politics. The founding principle
of Common America was to create a better and more responsible government. By
connecting people on the Internet and allowing more ideas to reach more people
we are doing just that. The more people involved in the process means the more
accountable those in office must be to the people, this directly results in
better government policies and a government that is responsible to the people
that they represent.
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Greg Henderson is the founder of Common America, a political organization devoted
to good government practices and positive campaigning. To learn more about how
you can help bring better government and positive campaigns to life visit Common
America.
Author's email:greg@commonamerica.org
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