We are
at an interesting junction in history right now, and it is fascinating
to see how social media is shaping the political landscape in this
election cycle. Remember, in 2004 Facebook had just launched and was
open to college students only, and YouTube didn't even exist! These
two sites alone have totally changed the game and we are now in a new
era of information sharing. The old days where politicians got away
with the occasional gaffe as long as the media didn't pick up on it are
over. Now, practically every second of their day is recorded and
posted almost instantly on YouTube and Twitter for the world to see and
hear. And of course on Facebook, the sharing of information and
personal beliefs is occurring on a staggering scale. Friends that I
would have NEVER had political discussions with are engaging on
Facebook. In fact, instead of a 2-way dialog between 2 people,
Facebook enables a multi-way dialog with a vast number of people.
Take
for instance the status comments. When someone on Facebook posts an
observation or political view on Facebook, his or her whole friend
network has the potential to see it. If people comment back, not only
does the original person receive alerts, but also everyone who comments
on it receives an alert as well. All of the sudden, what we think
about the process can be expressed and discussed more easily with much
larger groups of people. Breaking down the physical and geographic
barriers has huge implications, as we are not confined to hearing the
prevailing beliefs of our particular corner of the world.
I
believe that we are in the midst of a major shift in how people
perceive politics. No longer is it just for the older crowd that reads
the newspaper and watches 60 Minutes. Now everyone is talking - the
question is: who is paying the most attention?
What do YOU think? Is social media going to make a difference in this election?