whats the face of the election?

Election day is approaching; the day we have all been waiting for is less than 3 days away.

With all the attention the election is receiving on tv, I couldn't help but wonder how other people around the country are reacting to the media frenzy. The news litters the television screen with a news ticker giving up to date campaign updates, while the reporter spews patriotic infused language. All its gossip and visual propaganda can quickly become overwhelming, but luckily there is the internet, where information is direct and immediate. Right?

I was going to write a post about the polling websites, where public opinion can be seen without the bias of news stations. However, what I found was an equally messing ordeal. For instance, clicking on http://www.pollingreport.com/ and I was bombarded with ads “Will Obama lower gas prices? VOTE HERE!” and “Whose more likely to cheat? McCain or Obama?!” with the pictures of the presidential candidates’ wives pasted upon the ad. These polls are large, with colorful pictures, belittling the list of legitimate poll reports that runs down along the center of the page. I can’t help but ask, when did voting, and our election process as a whole, become this personal? Has the internet’s accessibility added to the masses knowledge of the election, or has it subsequently dumbed us all down to reduce the election to a few skits on SNL?

These questions are tough to answer, so instead I will look to the facts: what are people saying? What information is being circulated? And ultimately, how is it being represented?

When a user enters the pollingreport.com site, they can also find Newsweek’s Poll: Favorability Ratings for Obama and McCain, broken down weekly. This would appear to be a great indicator of the general trends of the election. However, the polls are actually only of those who entered the Newsweek site and took the poll themselves. That could mean the poll is limited to a center type of person, thus the results are biased in their creation. Fortunately the Newsweek poll, although the only one displayed, is not the only one a viewer can view and participate in. There are Categories such as Elections, State of the Union, In the News (with sub categories including prominent candidates, Ayers & ACORN, finances, etc), National Security and Issues (with sub categories abortion, environmental, immigration, same-sex marriage, etc). With these various categories, a user could potentially find out decently impartial information about any special interest they may have. In this way, the election issues could be becoming more accessible for the average citizen. This could also be a starting point for online conversations about the topics being voted upon, making the entire process interactive in ways it hasn’t been ten years ago.

In another area of the internet, the ever popular http://www.youtube.com/, is getting in on the election hype as well. Not only does the site offer videos of the debates, interviews, speeches, and news coverage for those who may have missed it, but it also is flooded with video spoofs, where Americans post videos with their own take on the candidates’ performance. The most popular recently have been the SNL skits depicting Sarah Palin, Joe Biden, John McCain, and occasionally Barack Obama. In response, news programs have posted segments asking the audience to respond to questions regarding the nature of such spoofs: are they delegitimizing the candidate’s campaign? Do they destroy credibility? Are they ethical? Then, these response are posted on the CNN, NBC, or FOX websites, in addition to being aired on TV. Ultimately, these videos put Americans in the conversation. They can interact with the election debates, give feedback, create buzz, and react to what is going on. As a whole, no one is left out of the Election 2008 discussion unless they personally decide not to participate. The meshing of media, through the internet, television, newspapers, and cellular communication, has brought a perspective to the elections that has never been seen before in this magnitude.

Lastly there are the popular, trendy clothing websites, which contribute to the election in a completely different view. Rather than focusing on the issues, whether being legitimate or not, sites such as http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/ provides clothing depicting the candidates in innovative ways. There are t-shirts that are distorted to make Sarah Palin look more alien-like, with the words “Sarah Palien” written across the chest. As a contrast, Urban Outfitters makes their political stance clear when making counter shirts that say “Barack of Love,” Barack the House,” Barack your World,” and screaming loud and clear “Obey Obama” with his face on the front. This brings an interesting element to the election: a ‘cool’ factor. Urban Outfitters is a popular, trendy store among college kids and young adults, the demographic usually left out during the presidential elections.

This election has brought a new kind of celebrity factor to the candidates, as their faces can be blasted on everything from billboards, TV, the internet, videos, and now trendy t-shirts. Voting and being politically aware has become a popular thing to do. With shirts like “Rock the Booth,” and “VOTE” Urban Outfitters has made young kids involved in ways they may not have been before. And with everything in one place, a college student could go online to shop at their favorite store, see political statements, switch over to another popular site to watch videos of the candidates whose shirt they just bought, and then top it off by going somewhere ‘official’ to see how they are doing in the polls.

I am not sure what all this means for the election on Tuesday, but I can report that the ways in which Americans are getting involved is drastically changing. The presidential election is proof of nothing short of great technological progress. The young American demographic probably has the most to gain from the countless sources of information available, but on election day will these kids vote?...Or will the new way of political exchange end at their laptops?

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This is a blog established for the class Intro to Digital Media at Rutgers University.