Archive for May, 2010
Hot on the heels of last week’s popular Martin Matheny piece on campaigns and social media, here’s a great excerpt on a similar topic by Josh Koster and Tyler Davis from Digital Political Campaigns 101. Download your free copy today.
Ten Commandments of Campaign Social Media
By Josh Koster and Tyler Davis
Excerpted from Digital Political Campaigns 101
1. Thou shalt not ignore social media.
If you think you can entirely ignore social media, Google your candidate and then Google the opponent.
2. Thou shalt not worship the false social media god.
Social media is not your campaign savior. If your candidate thinks social media is a mythical democratic medium that will catapult him to viability, jump ship.
(more…)
May 25th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
We don’t know the actual truth, since the Other Half of the equation is denying all knowledge, but South Carolina blogger Will Folks is claiming that he had an “inappropriate physical relationship” with Republican gubernatorial (and “family values”) candidate Nikki Haley….Oh, my.
First thought: what are they putting in the water in South Carolina? Second thought: dating a blogger? That’s a disqualifier on the basis of taste, judgment, good health and basic mental hygiene, regardless of any considerations of morality and the sanctity of marriage (most of these guys haven’t had their shots). Seriously, in an age of over-sharing, bloggers tend to be the most over-sharingest of all, and any relationship between a politician and an online writer is more likely than average to become public knowledge, with the appropriate ensuing consequences. Except, of course, when you date within the e.politics circle of authors, readers and hangers-on — our charms are irresistible, and our lips are sealed….
– cpd
May 24th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
According to an article in National Journal today, Newt Gingrich is so bullish on internet advertising that he’s encouraging Republicans to spend as much on it as they do on television. Fortunately for Republican candidates, NJ reporter Ashlie Rodriguez talked to some people who are actually knowledgeable about the subject and found a skeptical response. Yes, sources said, online advertising is valuable, but allocating it 50% of an overall ad budget wasn’t a good idea. For one thing, television ads remain the best way to reach uncommitted/marginally aware voters, since they’re not paying attention to politics online and hence are hard to target with political content. For another, it’s the cross-channel integration that counts, not the absolute percentages — an idea you’ve probably heard around here before.
Of course, a hard number for a campaign’s online allocation is hard to come up with, but most should probably be thinking more in the 10-30% range than 50%, in large part depending on how effective TV is going to be in their particular race. For instance, a congressional campaign in a busy urban area is likely to waste a lot of television ads on people unable to vote in that particular race, making online advertising’s geotargeting capability really valuable for that particular candidate. For other campaigns, the dynamics will be different and could easily favor a television-heavy strategy, meaning that smart candidates will tailor their spending to the actual local circumstances. Other candidates will listen to grand pronouncements from ignorant-but-enthusiastic cheerleaders, and make mistakes accordingly. Your choice.
– cpd
May 24th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
Also published on The Huffington Post and techPresident
The fruits of Eric Cantor’s new “YouCut” project made it to the House floor last week, with results entirely predictable: nothing passed, and it did so amid great partisan kerfluffle. But according to the House Minority Whip’s office, some 280,000 people voted online or via text on the particular measure they’d like to see deleted from the federal budget, in what Cantor’s new media guy described as “the most direct use of technology to establish a more direct democracy in the history of the federal legislature.” Mission accomplished? Not quite.
Leaving aside the question of whether or not we settle the federal budget via popular vote in this country (if you like direct democracy, you’re going to LOVE California), something’s rotten at the core of YouCut. Of course the language involved in describing the various programs YouCut participants vote to “kill” is slanted (just about any government program taken out of context can be made to sound ridiculous), but that’s politics. And yes, it’s a naked attempt to get the emails and cell numbers of Tea Partiers and their fellow travelers, but again, list-building via online activism is an internet classic. I’m talking about something more fundamental: YouCut is dishonest, the cynical act of a leadership that’s put the scoring of short-term political points ahead of developing a coherent plan to govern.
(more…)
May 22nd, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
New guest author! Check out the post below for the first of what I hope will be many articles from political consultant Martin Matheny (blog, Twitter), who comes to us with a terrific set of tips for campaigns using social media.
Nine Things Campaigns Shouldn’t Forget in the Gee-Whiz World of the Social Web
Martin Matheny
The great thing about the social Web for campaigns is that the tools are widely-available, user-friendly, and free or cheap. Any campaign, national or hyperlocal, can get involved with little to no barriers to entry.
The absolutely mind-bogglingly terrible thing about the social Web for campaigns is the the tools are widely available, user-friendly, and free or cheap. Campaigns can quickly find themselves all over the social media map, going 100 miles an hour in a half-dozen different directions and going nowhere fast.
If you’re just starting to employ the social Web for this cycle, or if you’ve been running for awhile and want a quick reality check, here are a few things to remember.
1. Think combo plate, not buffet.
Think about the traditional concept of “media mix,” the proportion of broadcast television to direct mail to radio to whatever. I’d suggest the same concept applies to new media and the social Web. The range of options available to you are a buffet — you can have a scoop of everything. But should you? Think combo plate instead — just the most important tools to keep you focused on the message, not the platform.
(more…)
May 21st, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
Corporate communicators in your mighty legions, The Onion has your number:
New Social Networking Site Changing The Way Oh, Christ, Forget It
Let Someone Else Report On This Bullshit
NEW YORK — While millions of young, tech-savvy professionals already use services like Facebook and Twitter to keep in constant touch with friends, a new social networking platform called Foursquare has recently taken the oh, fucking hell, can’t some other desperate news outlet cover this crap instead?
(more…)
May 21st, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
For a terrifically detailed look at contemporary online campaigning, be sure to check out the new publication put together by ClickZ’s intrepid political advertising reporter Kate Kaye — Digital Political Campaigning 101 (hmm, wonder where they got the title?) includes chapters by actual, real-live practitioners, including the guys from Chong + Koster and Robert Willington, the digital coordinator for Scott Brown’s victorious campaign.
I have three short pieces as well, looking at list-building, fundraising and campaign websites, but those are relatively settled topics — several of the other articles break new ground, including Josh Koster’s in-depth look at how online advertising actually works for campaigns, with plenty of details about how to structure and target ad buys through the length of a campaign. Likewise with Robert Willington’s extended piece on integrating social media into a campaign, since Brown’s bid for Massachusetts Senate seat provides a dramatic recent example of how organized people-power can contribute to a political victory. Other chapters look at effective online video, getting buy-in for an online communications budget, the Ten Commandments of Campaign Social Media, and much more.
The best part is the price — absolutely free (hey, I wonder where they got that idea?), since all you have to do is provide an email address (list-building!) and you can download your own PDF copy. What a bargain! To demonstrate why you should part with your digital digits, I’ll be posting a few short excerpts from Josh, Robert, John Sample and others over the next few days. But don’t wait for the movie, get the book today.
– cpd
May 20th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
One quick point before I hop a plane back to DC — as you’re absorbing the media and the punditry’s attempts to Understand The Meaning of Tuesday’s primary losses by Arlen Spector in Pennsylvania and Trey Grayson in Kentucky (see: “Specter Defeat Signals a Wave Against Incumbents”), don’t forget the classic observation that all politics is local. In Pennsylvania, it shouldn’t be that big a surprise that Democratic primary voters decided to pick an actual Democrat to represent them rather than a party-switcher against whom many of them had been fighting for years.
(more…)
May 19th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
On a day when the American political world is focused on a handful of “insurgent” (outsider) campaigns challenging incumbent or establishment senatorial candidates in Pennsylvania, Arkansas and Kentucky, Jose Antonio Vargas asks in The Huffington Post whether the social web is a natural fit for candidates like Joe Sestak, Bill Halter and Rand Paul. The verdict? Future cloudy; ask again later. I.e., yes, online social tools can be a big help for a nontraditional candidate (or one not favored by the political elite), but on their own they’re no guarantee of victory. Jose has quotes from two friends-of-e.politics (Jon Henke, Peter Greenberger) besides my own “no silver bullet” line at the end, so be sure to check it out. And it’s going to be fascinating to see the results as they roll in — some prominent or well-backed political names (Arlen Specter, Blanche Lincoln, Trey Grayson) might not be with us much longer, in a political sense at least.
– cpd
May 18th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
Also published on The Huffington Post
Back in the day, a “sit-in” meant just that — taking over a physical space with physical bodies to make a political point. But the visibility of social media means that sit-ins aren’t just for university administrative offices anymore; now they can be staged online.
For a good example, check out the “virtual sit-in” begun by the District’s own Save Our Safety Net campaign last week, targeting DC city councilmember and mayoral candidate Vincent Gray’s Facebook pages. In the first two days alone, activists filled his council page and campaign page with over 150 messages, in a very public display of their desire to keep adequate funding for social programs for the District’s poor. Critically, as the DCist article about the sit-in notes, organizers followed up their online activism with an in-person visit, completing that vital online/offline political connection.
(more…)
May 17th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
Hey kids, this post comes to you from an Undisclosed Location somewhere in the Eurasian landmass (hint: the locals speak an Indo-European language, except when they don’t), where I’m currently ensconsed in a hotel bar enjoying among the finest cups of coffee ever made. The reason for the secrecy? I’m here with a couple of politically minded colleagues (a pollster and a messaging guy) to help a regional political party that’s been knocked out of power and trying to regain its mojo. Consequently, they don’t want to make it too easy for The Other Side to know what they’re up to. So, no digital footprints for now — sorry, Mr. Google.
This is the second of three trips we’re scheduled to make as a part of this project, which is taking me to a lovely city full of even more lovely inhabitants (mom, how would you feel about some half-[redacted] grandchildren sometime down the road?). And here’s what you need to know about why I’m here — the organizers of our expedition found me online, so it was this very website you’re reading now that got me flown across the [redacted] Ocean and plopped into this wonderful place. If it happened to me, it can happen to you, but only if you’re writing online. So start thinking about those guest posts — don’t leave Henri all alone out there.
– cpd
May 16th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
The online version of an irrestistible force versus an immovable object? Lefty internet activism powerhouse MoveOn.org is now taking on Facebook, specifically over the social networking site’s new features that expose even more personal information to the wider web than before. For details about what’s now open to the public, check out the landing page for the email MoveOn sent out earlier. Be prepared for a shock — the word “privacy” no longer seems to apply on Facebook, since not only do Apps now have access to users’ info without their knowledge, but to a large extent so does just about anyone online. And there’s no way to hide much of your data, short of deleting it. Naturally, MoveOn has a petition on the page…let’s see how Facebook responds.
– cpd
May 14th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
Also published on The Huffington Post
According to some of our Republican colleagues, the Democrats’ electoral fate is already settled in 2010, and it ain’t lookin’ good. With a 30- or 40-seat Republican gain in the House now regarded as a conservative projection, and John Boehner salivating at the prospect of seizing Nancy Pelosi’s gavel, even my friend and fellow online politico Patrick Ruffini has sipped the Kool Aid, arguing that Republicans might be seating 70 new Congressmembers next year.
But not so fast: six months is an eternity in politics, and we can already see the outlines of a Democratic resurgence through the fog of spin and rhetoric. Most importantly, time is on the Democrats’ side; that, and a few good decisions. Not that I’m looking ahead to Democratic gains in the Fall, since we’re defending far too many marginal seats picked up in the wave of 2008, but I do see a more typical incumbent-party loss in the range of 20-30 seats in the House and a handful in the Senate. Here’s why:
(more…)
May 13th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
For more, see this take on the fundamental insincerity of YouCut
Just got a call from a reporter looking for context on the latest pay-attention-to-me trick from House Republicans, announced today by Eric Cantor — they’re now going to allow citizens to vote every week via email or text to pick their favorite from a list of five potential budget cuts, on which the Republican House leadership will then attempt to force a floor vote via parliamentary maneuver. It’s a gimmick, of course. The proposed cuts will be cherry-picked to feature items designed to annoy the conservative base (taken out of context, almost ANY government program can be made to sound stupid), and none of them is likely to pass. Plus, the last time I checked, we don’t DO budgeting by direct democracy, particularly considering how well the budget-by-citizen-initiative process has worked in California.
But it’s a good excuse to email that activist list every week, and if it helps keep the base engaged through the summer (remember that Congress will go out of session early this year to begin campaigning) and recruits a few new potential donors, then it might do them some good. Gimmicks are no substitute for a comprehensive online outreach plan, though, and this initiative also has the secondary effect of opening Republicans up to criticism of their OWN record on the budget — something onto which Democrats were quick to hop. (For an earlier look at Republican crowdsourcing, see this piece on Tim Pawlenty.)
Update: 70,000 names in the first day? Not bad! Of course, we don’t know how many of them are NEW list members, but still. But also still a gimmick…
– cpd
May 12th, 2010
Trackback
Bookmark on del.icio.us
Previous Posts
