Here’s something the Clinton, Obama and McCain campaign consultants, advisers, strategists, directors or whatever they call themselves should read, from Idaho State University:
Noting the growing popularity of blogs as an information medium, [assistant professor in the James E. Rogers Department of Mass Communication at Idaho State University, Daekyung] Kim focused on blogging’s political impact. Blogs are online diaries or commentaries that readers can respond to and easily pass on to friends.
Kim’s study surveyed online political users to explore why users access political blogs after he wondered, “What motivates bloggers?”
“I found that many Internet users are attracted to political blogs, where they can freely express their opinions and communicate with like-minded people,” Kim said. “This seems to show the potential of blogs as an interactive forum with few controls. This study may offer useful insights into the roles of blogs during presidential elections and in politics in general.”
Note the “freely express their opinions and communicate with like-minded people.” That doesn’t bode too well for sites like RedBlueAmerica or Wide Open for that matter, unless people are using such sites as merely tools for information gathering. But for interacting? Maybe not so much or at least not crossing over to discuss with those who aren’t of a like-mind.
I’ve emailed Professor Kim in hopes of seeing the report.