e.politics: online advocacy tools & tactics

E.J. Dionne on Tonight’s Debate: ‘Keep an eye on the Twitter feeds’

October 16th, 2012

E.J. “gets” how social media changes the environment within which political events occur:

But there is another aspect of tonight, and that’s the part played by the staffs of the two candidates and their supporters. What people say during the debate — Twitter has really changed things — matters a lot. So does what happens after it’s over and how it’s interpreted and spun. These things can matter almost as much as the debate itself.

We are all spinmeisters now! And what the campaigns do in a social space is potentially less important than what their supporters — and opponents — say as they do it. A Brave New World!

– cpd