Digital Media Practices Used by Political Websites

Digital media practices have become an indelible part of our world. Digital media practices are an important part of getting an organization’s message to the public, and with the Internet and social media forums; people have a worldwide platform to spread their message. A political website will be discussed in terms of the two examples of the website’s exemplary digital media practice, as well as why the practices are effective and innovative from a historical/theoretical perspective. Implications of the site's approach for future social justice and political practices will be reviewed. The theories/history will be explained, and how President Barack Obama’s campaign expounded upon these concepts to create innovative and effective digital media campaign practices.  

According to Loader and Mercea (2011), when digital media was first researched, critics delineated the messages communicated via the Internet to be messages of abuse, discrimination, and skewed towards conveying the agenda of affluent Caucasian males. However, with the advent of social media, the delineation of power has shifted from central groups, political agendas, and corporations to the individual voices of the people. According to Loader and Mercea:

The distinctiveness of this second generation of Internet democracy is the displacement of the public sphere model with that of a networked citizen-centred perspective providing opportunities to connect the private sphere of autonomous political identity to a multitude of chosen political spaces. It thus represents a significant departure from the earlier restricted and constrained formulations of rational deliberation with its concomitant requirement for dutiful citizens. In its place is a focus upon the role of the citizen-user as the driver of democratic innovation through the self-actualized networking of public interest engaged in lifestyle and identity politics. (p.757).

Social media is now a part of the American lifestyle, and the way people gather and interrelate now has the added dimension of social media. The Barack Obama campaign expounded upon social media in a manner that was historic and groundbreaking. Barack Obama’s (2013) campaign took advantage of the Tumblr zeitgeist. The use of Tumblr alone is one example of the innovative use of social media to spread his message. Tumblr, normally known for its free-for-all attitude in allowing people to post any content without censure, including sexually explicit materials, was utilized by the Barack Obama campaign for the first time to get its message out to the people. Creating a forum of this sort gave people who support Obama a place to engage “in lifestyle and identity politics” (Loader & Mercea, 2011, p. 757).

The second example of innovation was in the way the Tumblr site was constructed (Obama, 2013). The site has the added feature of allowing any person to post content on the website to express their views. This gave people the chance to be heard, individually, in front of the nation, and in front of their future president. Its brilliance is in including all participating Americans and making them feel like they are co-creators in the future of their nation. 

Two examples of how Barack Obama used digital media practices in an exemplary fashion were explained, along with the historical and theoretical concepts that were the driving force behind these examples. Obviously, these tactics were very effective, because Barack Obama found a way to reach the people, give them a voice and make them feel like their future president is listening. His innovative use of social media has propelled him to reelection. It is a good lesson to learn for any person that would like to be heard and seen on the Internet. His indelible mark will be an influence upon political campaigns for years to come.

References

Loader, B. D. & Mercea, D. (2011). Networking democracy? Information, Communication, & Society, 14(6), 757-769.

Obama, B. (2013). Organizing for action. Retrieved from http://barackobama.tumblr.com/