Well folks, I'm back again with another new post! Had a fantastic time in Barcelona and Dublin (thanks for asking), but it has truly wiped me out and furthermore I need another holiday to get over the fun times that was had in those wonderful cities! While I was away No.10 Downing Street finally announced that we are indeed having a General Election on the 6th May 2010 - surprise, surprise! In the past few weeks my Twitter account is being followed by quite a few MPs/election candidates and the main political parties. I'm following the three main parties - Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats just in case you didn't know - on Twitter, just to see what they are saying. The Conservatives are bombarding my twitter feed, especially when the Prime Minister's Question Time is on! However, as the media use the term "internet election" to describe this election, is it really working as a way to communicate to the masses?
As my Twitter feed is being regularly filled with what Nick Clegg is saying about Gordon Brown or David Cameron, or vice verse it makes me think who is actually reading all of this and thinking "hmmm maybe I'll vote for them?" The Guardian's Emily Bell had an interesting article about how many MPs are embracing the worlds of Twitter and Facebook but she also questioned the justification of them using it.
Only last week, we saw the negatives of MPs using Twitter and this is a classic case of how NOT to use your social media networking sites... if only he went to our lecture about how to protect your reputation online! But then again, he was up to mischievious for over 16 months.
As soon as the election campaign officially started the leaflets started pouring through the letterbox. I haven't seen any in Scotland yet, but Northern Ireland have their campaign posters up already. In the next couple of weeks we'll probably have politicians coming around our doors asking who we'll be voting for and how they will change things for that area. These are all traditional tools that politicians have used for years. to woo voters Their main issue for the past twenty years is apathy. The young first time voters are their main targets this time and with the overload of politicians Twittering and Facebooking, does this make them attractive to the young voter? Time will tell! I agree with Emily Bell and think that this is a so-called "internet election" we have a long way to go to fully understand and implement it in future elections.
Cutlip et al. (2006:411) argues that,
Robert Leach (93: 2009) "... democracy requires open government and freedom of information, which provides massive opportunities but creates some problems for those engaged in PR." He puts it nicely in a nutshell!
Do you think politicians (those who do not slag voters, that is) should use Twitter or other social networking sites to communicate to prospective voters? Or is it just a gimick for politicians to be seen using the recent social networking fad to look cool in front of the kids?
The moral of this general election story is not to ignore or annoy the old people as they are the ones who'll be out voting on 6th May 2010! This should be an interesting election and I personally look forward to the next few issues of Private Eye - bring it on!
As my Twitter feed is being regularly filled with what Nick Clegg is saying about Gordon Brown or David Cameron, or vice verse it makes me think who is actually reading all of this and thinking "hmmm maybe I'll vote for them?" The Guardian's Emily Bell had an interesting article about how many MPs are embracing the worlds of Twitter and Facebook but she also questioned the justification of them using it.
The Obama campaign is often held up as a model of "internet politics" in action. But while the web was expertly exploited by it as a tool for fundraising and organisation, since the election there has been a lack of insight into how to deal with the genie in all its forms once released from the bottle. Hence the deep disappointment of supporters who felt included by the campaign but ignored by the government.
Only last week, we saw the negatives of MPs using Twitter and this is a classic case of how NOT to use your social media networking sites... if only he went to our lecture about how to protect your reputation online! But then again, he was up to mischievious for over 16 months.
As soon as the election campaign officially started the leaflets started pouring through the letterbox. I haven't seen any in Scotland yet, but Northern Ireland have their campaign posters up already. In the next couple of weeks we'll probably have politicians coming around our doors asking who we'll be voting for and how they will change things for that area. These are all traditional tools that politicians have used for years. to woo voters Their main issue for the past twenty years is apathy. The young first time voters are their main targets this time and with the overload of politicians Twittering and Facebooking, does this make them attractive to the young voter? Time will tell! I agree with Emily Bell and think that this is a so-called "internet election" we have a long way to go to fully understand and implement it in future elections.
Cutlip et al. (2006:411) argues that,
In a real sense, the purpose of democracy itself closely matches the purpose of public relations. Successful democratic government maintains responsive relationships with constituents, based on mutual understanding and two-way communications.
Robert Leach (93: 2009) "... democracy requires open government and freedom of information, which provides massive opportunities but creates some problems for those engaged in PR." He puts it nicely in a nutshell!
Do you think politicians (those who do not slag voters, that is) should use Twitter or other social networking sites to communicate to prospective voters? Or is it just a gimick for politicians to be seen using the recent social networking fad to look cool in front of the kids?
The moral of this general election story is not to ignore or annoy the old people as they are the ones who'll be out voting on 6th May 2010! This should be an interesting election and I personally look forward to the next few issues of Private Eye - bring it on!
Nice blog! Personally, I find it's hard to be interested in politics at the best of times, but currently I'm finding it more abhorrent than ever, with no outstanding candidate or party apparent amongst all the political effluent. Of course, absurdly, it's that sort of arms-race situation which increases the voting impact of the individual but I honestly can't muster the motivation to care. I'll be disappointed regardless! Democracy these days is basically a school yard slagging fest. From a public perspective I think it's become puerile and fundamentally condescending. Rant over...
ReplyDeleteGood post Clare! You are right on the button in discussing this issue just now with politician’s use of social media being more apparent than ever in the run up to the election. It’s a topic I considered writing on myself but couldn’t quite stomach it so thanks for the info!
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with the comment above that I am also finding it pretty hard to engage with what the individual parties are saying. I did catch a Scottish Labour political broadcast the other night which was literally a 5 minute rant on the wrongs of the Conservatives in the past. They are still going on about Thatcher!? I learned nothing about what they themselves propose to do if elected and it only made me feel like they are out of touch and stuck in the past. The very use of a political broadcast seems quite old-fashioned now too. Almost too overtly propagandistic or something...
On the other hand communicating with the public through social media has the potential perhaps to really talk to people in a more grounded way and perhaps enable those familiar with the tools to find it easier to find out what exactly is being proposed by each party.
I'm away to follow each party online to try and figure out what is actually being said and who knows, I might just vote for who uses twitter best. Social media is the future after all right?!
Political parties may be using social media to be seen as cool, but it's also a good way to reach out to the youth, especially to first time voters.
ReplyDeleteNot everyone these days watch tv news channels or internet news websites such as the BBC to keep up with the political news.
The more media they use, the more people they are likely to reach and hopefully influence for their benefit.
Emma, I do tire of Labour (and their hardened voters) who constantly moan and groan about Thatcher ... Dear old Tony wasn't so great and arguably was a lot worse than Maggie! The old traditional TV political broadcast are really cheesy and I agree with you that they are propaganda. I'm just glad I'm voting over here rather than back home, as the politicians are a lot worse with their ranting!
ReplyDeleteToivo, I agree that it is a good way for politicians to connect with the youth, but I feel that many young people will just ignore their tweets or facebook updates. Britain has suffered from voter apathy for a long time. I'm afraid our candidates aren't as charismatic or inspirational as Barack Obama. If it wasn't for the fact that I did Politics at school, I don't think I'd be that interested myself but I have been educated that voting is very important.
Barcelona is absolutely wonderful:) I am glad you had a great time!
ReplyDeleteI read in PR Week that the Conservative party was making parliamentary candidates submit their twitter posts to some central office where they could be vetted – extreme control freakery but it does help to eliminate the problem suffered by Labour with their now deselected candidate.
ReplyDeleteI think that you have got to be interested in the party before you seek them out on twitter and when you are following all three then it's just a case of who can bombard people the most.
The Conservatives were bombarding me but now as it is the week of the election, the Liberal Democrats have taken over.
ReplyDelete