I am an everyday user of the social networking site, Facebook, as some of you may already know. I use other sites such as Myspace and Twitter also. Lately I feel like I am being bombarded by political ads! I think every website I use or happen to come by has some sort of political ad or section/tab. For those Twitter.com users, the Election 2008 tab is a nonstop microblogging section for users to update and leave comments or statements about how they feel about certain political issues, candidates, and anything dealing with the 2008 presidential race.
You have to be a member to check out Twitter, but it is a free networking site that is becoming more popular each day. You should sign up. On Twitter, on each individual's profile one can choose to write a one line biography about himself. It's optional, so other users can know a little about the person's profile that is being viewed. Well, my one line bio is "Love being a conservative New Orleans Greenie. Currently trying to enter the integrated marketing comm. world" (same as my about me) and just from that bio and having one word, conservative, I have organizations like RedState, a conservative news and community group, MilitaryChild, a coalition to support children of military families, and Dateline_DC, a general news feed group, following me on Twitter. I also got some followers who are mainly using Twitter for political reasons, from both sides of the presidential race. I find it interesting that organizations and users find others who have similar interest in common, like target marketing, so when they promote websites, links, and/or events those with similar interests and who are following them can respond positively and gain supporters.
Along with Twitter.com, Facebook is also promoting the presidential race. The advertisements that come across my profile are ones like "John McCain 08 T-Shirts", "Ready to Vote?", and "Dear American Voter" are just a few of the ads. The "Dear American Voter" ad has a caption asking "What is the most important issue in the upcoming election? Tell us!", this ad is promoting the site linktv.org, which is a place that people can post blogs, videos and comments about issues that they are concerned about or want to know more about for the upcoming election and they will receive feedback on that particular issue.
These are websites promoting other sites and organizations, but Television also promotes political websites. My sister watches Greek on ABC Family. As the commercials are ending, and right before the show continues, the cast of Greek are shown wearing "VOTE" t-shirts from a website called, Declare Yourself. The cast is telling the viewers to vote and to go to this website to register to vote. The t-shirts are white with "VOTE" in black, so not promoting one candidate over another. It's a pretty neat website. It allows individuals to read about issues, to post their thoughts and questions, and to register to vote. It is a site to allow a person to gain their own perspective on a candidate. It doesn't bash any political side. It gives both sides of a certain issue. I think it's a great website for the younger crowd to visit and explore. I would have never known about the site if it weren't for the TV promotion. The site is also known for the "VOTE" t-shirts made by American Eagle Outfitters.
I know we all get overloaded with advertisements everyday, but I can't help but notice all the political ones. It gets annoying seeing and all the same content everywhere! But some of these ads that are being promoted are working for the organizations who are putting them out there. So good for them, I guess. And, I don't know about you, but I can't wait till they no longer exist!
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4 comments:
I wonder if they've ever thought about overexposure? For me, if I see something too much, then I start ignoring it. This is, of course, the exact opposite of what the politicians want.
Good post with lots of information and links. I think it's funny how that one word leads advertisers to reach out to you. I'm not a democrat but I signed a Moveon.org petition, and now I get tons of Obama messages.
You can use this to make some good points during the class Nov. 5 -- *after* the election.
I, too, feel bombarded. I think it is interesting that the campaigns are still pushing so hard. I never pay attention to online ads. Honestly, I utilize www.ontheissues.org and call it a year.
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