Social Media and Politics

Social media was a critical component in Barack Obama's successful presidential bid in 2008. Now Republicans, independents and other political movements have caught up, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center.

One reason is that in the last two years social media has become much more mainstream, even among older adults.

Another is the confluence of the medium and the message. "The Internet is a medium for challengers," says Republican digital media consultant Patrick Ruffini. "It's a medium to disrupt the existing power structure."

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Temporary Special-Purpose Websites a Great Tool

Sometimes its best to bring in the specialty team.

Public information outreach efforts, such as those necessary to explain community development or public finance issues, often must stand alone, away from the crowd, when competing for mindshare. But, for example, a government agency’s or a nonprofit’s website may not be robust enough to handle a powerful storytelling video, or may be too cluttered for visitors to easily find information.

Temporary, and not so temporary, single-issue websites are a great way for organizations to manage a hot-button issue. An organization’s existing multi-purpose site may not be flexible to enough fit immediate needs – despite the best of intentions of the PR team and the IT department.

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