Tech Talk: Social Media and Campaigns | Video

Jerame Novak | 9/26/2012

Many of us use social media, like Facebook and Twitter, to keep in touch with family and friends all over the world. With the November election coming up, many political campaigns are using social media as well, for similar reasons.

This is a busy time for campaign volunteers. In addition to traditional methods to get their message out, they have another tool at their disposal, social media.

"Well, parties have, I don`t know if people have adapted as well yet, and that`s one of the bigger issues. Parties have used Facebook, internet, Twitter to a great extent and some people follow, some don`t," said University of Mary Associate Professor of Political Science Dr. Mark Springer.

While the two major parties may not agree on all of the issues, they do agree that social media is important.

"Social media allows us to communicate with a variety of different voters on a more regular basis," said NDGOP Communications Director Anna Nix.

"Social media is very important. In the last few election cycles, we`ve kind of seen social media take the front seat where traditional media can sometimes be prohibitively expensive. Social media gives people an outlet to communicate," ND Dem-NPL Communications Director Rania Batrice.

And social media can also help the campaigns get the word out instantly to people all over the state.

"Facebook and Twitter can give us that grassroots feel and allow everybody to stay in the loop without having to watch 30 or 60 second ads on television," Batrice said.

"Where sometimes voters would only get to see candidates at town halls or parades or rallies. Now they are able to go on Facebook or follow them on Twitter and be able to see what they`ve been up to, look at pictures and interact with them on a more personal basis," Nix said.

Which means social media will continue to be a part of the campaign trail.

Dr. Springer adds that since anything that is said can be instantly put online, candidates are becoming more aware of what they are saying. Both good and bad.

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