Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2009
Abstract
Senator Barack Obama's historic victory in the 2008 election marks some important milestones - notably that this country is ready for its first African-American president. His win also underscores the importance of understanding today's Internet as a campaign tool. No longer is the Internet a one-way communications medium between candidate and electorate. It is now a powerful multi-directional networking tool. It can bridge physical and virtual spaces in a way never before possible, bringing previously latent social and political groups together. Senator Obama's campaign strategists understood and capitalized on the capabilities of what has recently become known as Web 2.0 - an Internet characterized by interactive group networking and participation. This article examines how the needs of Senator Obama's campaign converged with the features of this new Internet, in many ways creating a perfect online campaign platform for the senator. It contrasts his use of the Internet with other uses of the Internet in politics. It concludes with some comments about the likely future of the Internet in presidential politics.
Recommended Citation
Jacqueline D. Lipton,
From Domain Names to Video Games: The Rise of the Internet in Presidential Politics,
86
Denver University Law Review
693
(2009).
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.pitt.edu/fac_articles/474
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