"How Obama Really Did It"

"The social-networking strategy that took an obscure senator to the doors of the white house"

“How Obama Really Did It” is a relevant illustration of how journalism has shifted due to the emergence of network journalism. This article demonstrated the ability that social-networking strategies played within the 2008 election. The web site www.my.barakobama.com created in interactive network amongst the Obama supporters and created an online community that continued to expand throughout the election process. What I was able to draw from this article was the fact that the use of online tools such as, blogs, videos, and chats, dominated the election because, the Internet is now a medium used by a wide range of demographics.

I found it interesting that Obama begun to use the resources of the Internet early on during his campaign while his opponents had a difficult time catching up. Hilary Clinton and John McCain focused on the older generations and Obama targeted people of all ages and communicated with them based on their preferred communication channels. The article stated that “ the world is now caught up with the technology,” and Obama exhibited this by sending his supporters information by text messages, blogs, e-mails and other various resources. By doing this, it enabled many people to volunteer for his campaign that not only donated millions of dollars to the campaign, but also created viral support based on different communication channels. A clear demonstration of this is the viral YouTube video “Crush on Obama” by Obama Girl, that has been viewed almost 17 million times since the election. Obama girl received national attention and even has her own web site Obamagirl.com—therefore, drawing attention to Barrak Obama himself.

The article brought up an interesting idea when it spoke about Hilary Cliton’s role within social networks. Since Clinton did not take full advantage of online social networks, she relied on conventional campaign tactics, portraying the fact that she did not need online support and she could fund-raise money and support by herself. This is interesting because Cliton’s strategies play off of older media tactics, the idea of a one-way communication channel: Clinton spoke to her supporters and received a response through donations. On the other hand, Obama spoke to his supporters through different channels and the channels communicated to other people, creating a community. The community then helped raise support and donations for his campaign—no longer making it speaker and audience related, but more of a team effort. I believe that because Obama embraced online social networking, this was one of the main reasons he won the campaign. Communication outlets have shifted and during the 2008 election it was crucial that the candidates recognized this change and used it to their advantage.

After winning the campaign, www.my.barackobama.com focuses on current political topics with the help of blogs and videos. The supporters are able to express concern or praise for policies and this allows a more personal network for Obama and his supporters.

Link: Social Networking and the 2008 Election

Questions:

1.) The article states that McCain attempted to use network socializing through his daughter’s “bloggette” to attract younger supporters. Why was this not as successful as Obama’s online tools?

2.) In your opinion, what created the large number of interactive volunteers and supporters during the 2008 election and how did this election differ from past elections?

3.) The media has consistently focused on politician’s private issues rather than political. Blogs and online articles have enabled the public to gain a larger role within journalism; therefore, do you think the public has more knowledge of political issues today than what is framed by the media?

4.) How has MyBO had a negative effect on Obama? What are some examples?