Apparently according to the news, Twitter and Facebook are old news when it comes to voters gaining information about politicans and election campaigns. They were both very heavily used in the 2008 elections, but smartphones are the way of the future. Mainly the IPhone, Android, and Blackberry with their Apps where voters can download apps relating to their favorite candidate or political party. You can download Apps that store your voter ID number, recent up to the date polls, and pretty much anything else you could possibly want pertaining to elections. President Obama was the first to really start this new wave with his campaign for President in 2008.
According to Fox News, Democrats are mre likely to use this new form of media than Republicans. Roughly 11.9 percent of registered voters have either an IPhone or IPad, while 14.3 percent have Blackberries, and lastly 4.6 percent of voters own a Droid. Combined that' a total of 30.8 percent of all registered voters, which could really make a difference in the campaign world.
I found this very intersting, I knew smartphones were a large part of how people communicate, but I was unaware of the high levels of interest campaigers have in reaching voters this way. It makes more sense to haev access through your phone, seeing as how we all have our phones with us 24/7, and everyone can't get online to access Facebook and Twitter as often. This is a very smart way for the candidates to try and reach another audience they may not otherwise reach.
What would be interesting to see is how many of the smartphone voters overlap with the voting dempgraphic. Those who actually tend to get out and vote are the ones who dont have smartphones, the older population. Regardless, its interesting, I know I always have my BlackBerry with me!!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, I think they're trying a little hard to reach younger voters in a "hip" way. Although I do also always have my IPhone with me!
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