Feb 5, 2008 8:58 pm US/Eastern
Political Ad Revolution Invades Cyberspace
Amateur Online Music Videos Do Huge Traffic, Give Candidates Free, Positive Exposure
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Who knows how many people are persuaded by an amateur online political music video? Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have been major beneficiaries, getting millions of web hits without doing anything.
CBS
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Will.i.am of the Blackeyed Peas just decided one day to make a video supporting Barack Obama after hearing the Illinois senator speak in New Hampshire.
CBS
The candidates are spending tens of millions of dollars on television spots in our area. But the Internet is playing more of a role in this year's elections than ever before.
The Web has been used primarily as a fundraising and organization tool. This year, some candidates took to the Internet to announce they were running. But now, supporters are using it in even more creative ways.
The newest weapon on the campaign trail is online music video, but they're not made by ad agencies.
We've all seen the Ted Kennedy and Barack Obama television spots, especially the one where the Illinois senator stands at a podium and rails on about change.
Emotional ads are traditional media and still very effective.
But how about a music video made by Will.i.am of the Blackeyed Peas. It is only available on the Web.
He wrote in his blog Obama's New Hampshire speech inspired him.
"So I called my friends...and they called their friends...in a matter of 2 days...We made the song and video..." Will.i.am wrote.
In one week the video has been viewed by 11 million people.
"It's hard to know what kind of impact they're having but certainly their numbers are consistent with the kind of numbers that we see youth voters coming out," said David Birdsell, Dean of Baruch College's School of Public Affairs.
The "Yes We Can" video is professionally produced. But most of the videos online are done by amateurs. Thanks to more powerful home computers and better software, anyone can create a political message or music video and post it online for millions to see.
Phoenix, Ariz., musician Alice Bag and her family recently created an homage to Hillary Clinton, titled "Women On Top."
"I was playing the song with my friends and my husband and daughter came over to me and they started talking to me and they said 'sound's like a great idea for a video,'" Bag told CBS station WCBS-TV in New York City by phone.
They put it together in three hours and have gotten a huge response.
"It's a great way to make your voice heard even if you don't have much money behind you," Bag said.
Birdsell said the Internet has done a lot to rid this country of political apathy.
"That's one of the things that makes web campaigning so exciting," he said. "We're watching people, new people, participating in a process and changing the way that we understand the medium, and that we understand politics."
And it's not just the very young who are watching these videos; WCBS-TV found comments on those sites from 40-, 50- and even 70-year-olds. The Internet is connecting candidates to supporters like nothing ever has.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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