This Tuesday is an election day, and regardless of your political leaning, go out and vote.
Just as technology has changed business, it has changed politics. We have seen candidates able to increase their profile using technology. I consider myself to be a bit of a political junkie, I vote in as many elections as I can, not just the big ones. And I can do all the necessary research needed without leaving my house. I can research candidates using their websites, I actually will not vote for a candidate who does not have a website, kind of sad. I see what various groups have to say when it comes to things like amendments and propositions. All the information is at my fingertips.
Not only that, people can connect to other politically like minded people via the web. Websites like moveon.org and DailyKos appeal to liberal leaning voters, while I suspect the Tea Party has been helped with use of the web. Even this medium, the blog, has had an impact on politics, remember CBS News and Dan Rather being caught by a blog in 2004? Look at President Obama, I would argue he rewrote how to campaign in today's technology infused world. If I recall correctly, Hillary Clinton first announced she was running for President using a website, not a press conference. There have been many instances and there will be many more, of political candidates using technology to get in office.
I think that this shift in technology has also helped to shape the desire for transparency in politics that we now see today. The advent of web site distribution, background checks, social networking and the ability to "cyber stalk" has made it to where it is virtually impossible to hide anything from the public at large.
ReplyDeleteThis forces candidates to remain open and honest before the people, so that we can see people's platforms for what they really are.