2010 Trend: TV ads highlight Facebook

Posted by David All
Thu, 2010-05-20 16:32

One interesting trend I'm watching in 2010 is the inclusion of Facebook in traditional political TV advertisements. A few I've seen recently...

The Club For Growth ran a successful comprehensive on- and offline campaign to ouster Utah Senator Bob Bennett. The TV spot showed screenshots of the "Stop Bob Bennett" Facebook Community. [Disclosure: DAG worked on this effort.]

Stop Bob Bennett

Straight-talkin' (and shootin') Alabama Agriculture Commissioner candidate Dale Peterson slams his opponent for bragging on his "Facebook page" about taking campaign money from the industries he'd regulate -- an alleged contribution violation.


And out of Wisconsin, a spot from the gubernatorial race mentions a "barrage of negative comments on Facebook" toward the opposing candidates position on an issue.

Facebook mentioned in political ads

Are there other political TV spots out there which incorporate Facebook? If so, add a link in the comments.

Sarah Palin and Twitter Usernames

Posted by David All
Sun, 2010-04-25 11:33

In a POLITICO article published yesterday about how the 2012 POTUS candidates are using the online channel, I'm quoted criticizing Sarah Palin for the way they handled transitioning her original Twitter handle (@AKGovSarahPalin) to what it is today (@SarahPalinUSA).

In case you're not a regular reader, this is an issue which TechRepublican contributor Jeff Vreeland covered in this space last November. His post was triggered by this Tweet which I wrote when both accounts were still active in hopes that they'd listen:

Sarah Palin and Twitter Usernames

Rebecca Mansour, who works for Palin and is also the aunt of one of my employees, sought to clarify the Twitter username issue which POLITICO later included in the story. It should be noted that Rebecca had no part of the original decision or in choosing the current handle.

Here's how it is today:

For example, All pointed out that, after Palin resigned as Alaska governor, she terminated a Twitter account with a so-called “handle” identifying her as governor, which had thousands of followers, and started assembling a following from scratch using a new account with the handle @SarahPalinUSA.

“All she had to do was go in and change her user name and setting, and she could have kept all her supporters,” All said.

But Rebecca Mansour, who helps run Palin’s Internet operation, said Palin had to hand over her previous Twitter account to the state of Alaska because it was “regarded as state property,” so she couldn't merely convert it to keep her followers.

I stand by my comments on how the Twitter account was handled for a few reasons.

1. Twitter is not a state asset - it is "owned" by Twitter. It is hard to imagine a state law which would deem a Twitter account "state property" and therefore force her to turn it over to the state as an asset. Firstly, Twitter is not an email list which was built using state resources. Her follower count was at over 152,000 well over 500K and I'd be willing to bet 151,500 499,500 of the followers lived outside of Alaska built during the 2008 Presidential campaign. Further, even if it were somehow a state asset, the account should/would/could have been transferred to the current Governor, Sean Parnell by simply changing the username. A quick look at Parnell's account (@AKGovParnell) shows the account unoccupied and with a mere 151 followers. Instead the @AKGovSarahPalin account was terminated abruptly after posting an update that all followers should transfer to the new account. My question: If it were a "state account" (which might be news to Twitter) -- why was it terminated versus keeping and utilizing it as a state asset?

Note: I'm going back-and-forth via email with Rebecca Mansour who is going to put me in touch with Palin's attorney who handled the Twitter issue when she left office. I'll include his comments and legal perspective when I have them. Read Thomas Van Flein's feedback below.

2. Sarah Palin should/could be @SarahPalin. From personal and professional experience, I've found the Twitter team very approachable and willing to help ensure that celebrities, politicians, websites, musicians, etc. obtain their Twitter real estate. In Sarah Palin's case, I'm pretty sure that Twitter would terminate the dormant @SarahPalin account to give it to her. The next step would be to get the account Verified. You can find out more about how Twitter deals with issues of impersonation, copyright and trademark violations on their support page. Sarah Palin is a rock star, particularly online, so it's quite easy to leverage that status knowing that Twitter itself would want a rock star like Palin to use their service effectively. At the very least, she could grab the dormant @Sarah_Palin account which is clearly run by her supporters.

What is interesting is that I've received close to two dozen Tweets from folks who support Palin asking for me to correct my comments because they think I was wrong. That speaks to the point I made in the article about Palin's true online potential not being realized. To respond directly to those in the Palin community who Tweeted -- I'm sure my comments were received as just another individual hating on Sarah Palin when really they were objectively based through observation, discussion with others in this space, and knowledge of how Twitter (both the corporation and the platform) works. In the online space, seemingly little details, like a Twitter username, make a major impact and should always receive thoughtful consideration.

Hopefully this post helps clarify my position and the issue. Feel free to weigh in on the comments or Tweet with the hashtag #TechGOP so they are archived in our feed.

UPDATE:Thomas Van Flein, personal attorney for Governor Sarah Palin offers his unedited response to the decision made at the time and how Team Palin weighed the risks (public fight with the state of Alaska during a time of transition) versus the reward (keeping the account/followers):

Our initial position on this matter was that the Twitter account either belonged to Governor Palin outright or could be "transferred" to her personally if the State claimed a proprietary interest.

Almost immediately we were informed that the State of Alaska considered the account "state property" since it was established through the State IT department and the tweets were created while she was a state employee and pertained to State business. State employees (i.e. the Governor) created the content "on state time" about State matters. In short, the State claimed "ownership" of the account and the contents as well as the followers. Whether the State asserted this position correctly is obviously debatable.

Ultimately the State simply refused to consider any other position, and we were not about to turn this into a legal dispute, a headline or any problem whatsoever. A public fight with the State over something like this had little upside and plenty of risk image and messaging wise. A headline declaring "Governor sues state over Twitter" is not consistent with a smooth hand over. Our job was to help with the transition from public to private employment, and engaging in a legal dispute over this was not productive. We were fairly sure that with her high profile, her followers would find her new account easily enough.

- Thomas Van Flein, personal attorney for Governor Sarah Palin

What a great perspective. Thanks for weighing in Thomas.

To conclude and comment as I see it -- Team Palin understood the value of the profile and initially tried to maintain ownership (or shared ownership, I might argue, with Twitter). The state-level IT folks, likely a problem in every state, pushed back on the account ownership question because they don't understand how best to treat emerging situations that are not black and white technically, legally or politically. So ultimately the decision was made to cut bait, terminate the account, and move on with a new account. Fair enough.

But we've now identified a problem which we should work to address collectively: How should the accounts of government officials be treated once they leave office? The Palin situation ended up being a lose-lose for both the state and for Sarah Palin. The state/next governor didn't keep or utilize the followers and Sarah Palin had to start from scratch though it was her -- as a personality -- which fueled the growth of the account every day.

What do you think?

Sign-up for a FREE daily email of Tweets from Capitol Hill at TweetWatchReport.com.

The "Webster" on Politics and Online Activism

Posted by David All
Sun, 2010-03-07 20:44

Ralph Benko, author of The Websters' Dictionary and self-proclaimed "Webster," was on C-SPAN's Washington Journal this morning where he discussed politics and online activism.

Of note, when asked what organizations "get it" on the right he said TeamSarah.org (which Ralph helped build up and disclosed as such on the show) and Americans for Prosperity. In particular, he tipped his hat to AFP's Erik Telford.

Visualize Data to Win Political Debates

Posted by David All
Tue, 2010-03-02 11:10

Countless federal and local policies, especially the health care legislation, are being proposed and debated in Washington and across the country on an almost daily basis. Power players in these debates -- including Members of Congress, think-tanks and other organizations that have a stake in the legislation being debated -- must rely heavily on facts and figure to provide support for their stance on a piece of legislation. Ultimately, using these numbers serves to convince the American public of the stance being taken by the organization or individual.

Visualize Data to Win Political Debates

While citing statistics -- like the anticipated cost of a bill or how it would impact an individual's federal income tax -- in a message adds credibility to an argument, it is often difficult for members of the public to fully grasp the meaning of these numbers because of a lack of context or background information. And, unless an individual is already adequately knowledgeable on a certain issue, referring to numbers can do more harm than good by adding even more confusion to already heavily academic subject.

The key to disseminating facts and figures that are vital to building support for an argument is through data visualization. Graphs and other types of charts can be very effective because, if they are done properly, they allow people to visualize the data being cited which makes the information presented more real and understandable.

But it's not enough to just produce the data visualization. There needs to be a coordinated, multi-channel distribution approach that focuses on persuading the audience to not only side with the position being promoted, but also to spread the information to their networks. This is the most effective way to use data visualization to have a real and effective impact on the debate at hand.

This type of approach was recently exemplified by Organizing for America's (OFA) in its efforts to build up support for President Obama around the one-year anniversary of the $787 billion stimulus.

While Republicans in Congress and conservatives across the country pointed to the nearly 10 percent national unemployment rate as proof that the stimulus had failed to create jobs and stimulate the economy, OFA -- an arm of the Democratic National Committee -- launched a coordinated campaign to persuade Americans that President Obama's administration had put the country back on a "Road to Recovery."

2010-03-01-road-to-recovery-through-data-visualization-roadtorecovery.pngThe first - and main - aspect of OFA's efforts was a chart showing U.S. job loss statistics between December 2007 and January 2010. This allowed people to compare the number of jobs lost during President Obama's first year in office with the number of job lost during President Bush's last year in office.

Instead of spreading the chart as a PDF that a user would have to download to view, the chart was placed on a landing page on My.BarackObama.com. The page featured share buttons which enabled individuals to spread the chart through their networks on Facebook and Twitter and with their contacts via email with the click of a button.

Organizing for America also launched a web video which really took advantage of the easy-to-comprehend chart and explained the meaning of the numbers in a more engaging and compelling way.

The video convincingly portrayed the nation's economic situation under President Obama as much improved compared to the economic situation under President Bush. The ultimate point of the video was to convince the American public that small businesses and the unemployed are now receiving help from the government -- because of the stimulus package. This, in turn, was successful in stopping even more Americans from losing jobs -- in other words, it "saved" these jobs. If the chart itself didn't do enough to make the case for OFA, the video certainly helped to convince more people of the stance being presented.

2010-03-01-house-gop-health-care-maze-Screenshot20100301at9.31.15AM.pngRepublicans have also taken advantage of the power of strong data visualization to get a point across. One of the best examples is the House GOP's Health Care Maze. This graphic illustrated the bureaucratic complexity inherent in the House Democrats' proposed health care legislation. While this chart effectively portrayed the message that the House Democrat's health care plan would create a confusing bureaucratic nightmare for America, Organizing for America's multi-channel execution and deployment of its one-year stimulus anniversary chart took the campaign to the next level. Not only did it succeed in spreading the information in multiple channels, it also succeeded in engaging its supporters to help spread the content even further and show strong support for President Obama.

Any organization -- whether it is political in nature or not -- that seeks to convince the public to take a certain stance on a piece of pending legislation can benefit from strong data visualization. But it's not enough to merely produce a chart -- there needs to be a strategic, dedicated, multi-channel approach to spread the information and engage individuals in the debate.

This article first appeared at the Huffington Post.

Vern Ehlers, Champion of Congressional Internet Usage, Retires

Posted by David All
Wed, 2010-02-10 18:20

This morning Michigan Republican Congressman Vern Ehlers (wiki entry) announced his retirement from Congress. While I'll leave the reasons for that retirement to The Fix, I want to reflect a bit on why those of us in the bipartisan/non-partisan technology, politics + transparency space will always tip our hat to the good work of Congressman Ehlers.

Long-time readers of this blog will remember that I was a part of The Open House Project. Specifically, I co-authored with the Sunlight Foundation's Paul Blumental, the chapter on how out-of-date, out-of-touch and restricting Member Rules were regarding their web-use. This chapter helped facilitate much-needed Franking Rule reform a year later.

In drafting our chapter, Paul and I led with a dissenting quote from Congressman Vern Ehlers that he stated when House Franking Rules governing mailings were applied to a Members' use of the Internet to communicate with constituents:

A new medium like [the Internet] that makes it possible to send thousands of messages at virtually no additional cost should not be governed by the same rules as snail mail. I think there's no reason we should not be able to communicate nationwide or even planetwide for that matter.
--Rep. Vern Ehlers, July 1, 2000

Nearly a decade later, when the Franking Rules were finally reformed, as ranking member of the committee of jurisdiction, Ehlers said in a statement:

"[House Administration Committee Chairman] Brady recognized the need to allow enhanced constituent communication, and demonstrated outstanding leadership that enabled this Committee to adopt a long-overdue change. It is imperative that Members have the ability to use whichever web services they feel will best inform their constituents about the important issues facing this country."

Congressman Ehlers' understanding of the Internet and how it should apply to Congress is no surprise given his scientific background. Indeed, before coming to Congress in 1993 after winning a Special Election, Dr. Ehlers had a career in scientific research and teaching and was the first research physicist to serve in Congress.

But he wasn't just smart. He was, in fact, the "Smartest Congressman Ever" as labeled by Congressman Jack Kingston when Rep. Ehlers faced off with Ben Stein to "Win Jack Kingston's Onions."

So cheers to Congressman Ehlers for being a humble, visionary champion of a smarter usage of the Internet by Members of Congress.

The GOP Rises Online

Posted by David All
Thu, 2010-01-28 16:45

After President Barack Obama's historic election, the political pundits were quick to declare that the Democratic Party had an enduring hold on online organizing. Much was made of the Obama campaign's use of social networks - especially My.BarackObama.com which was built with the help of Chris Hughes, one of Facebook's cofounders. Countless newspaper articles, blog posts and segments on television news programs were dedicated to deconstructing what the Democrats had accomplished online, and coincidentally what the Republicans failed to accomplish.

But since the 2008 election, Republicans have surpassed the Democrats online, raking in millions of dollars in a span of only a few days, strongly winning statewide elections in Democratic strongholds and responding to the President's first State of the Union address with innovative direct media techniques.

This shift began in September with Congressman Joe Wilson's rapid online response after his outburst during a speech given to Congress by President Obama. Rather than booking television interviews with hostile mainstream media reporters to explain his case, Congressman Wilson utilized direct media to speak directly with millions of Americans nationwide. He used Facebook and Twitter to fight back against the attack of his critics, and took time to film short videos to keep his supporters up to speed and thank them for their encouragement. His campaign also executed the fastest Google advertising campaign to target the millions of people who took to Google to find out more about the Congressman. This allowed him to get his message out to the people without the traditional media's negative spin. Because of this, Wilson was transformed from a little-known Congressman from South Carolina into a nationally known and popular conservative figure.

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Wilson's online response was his tremendous fundraising success. Through the use of strong fundraising solicitations and an up-to-the-minute "Truth Money Bomb" widget that helped supporters visualize how their money was helping the Congressman reach an important goal, Wilson was able to raise more money in one quarter than he had raised throughout his entire reelection campaign in 2008. While many believed that Rob Miller - Wilson's Democratic opponent - would ultimately raise more money than Wilson through ActBlue, in the end Wilson outraised Miller by nearly one million dollars. And, just like Obama in 2008, a large majority of Wilson's $2.7 million fundraising haul came from small-donors who gave $200 or less.

Two months after Joe Wilson's successful rapid online response, Republican Bob McDonnell pulled out a 17-point victory over Democrat Creigh Deeds in Virginia's gubernatorial election - just a year after President Obama handily won the state by 6 points. While McDonnell had the executive experience and qualities of a great candidate, his comprehensive online campaign allowed him to win in an electoral landslide and helped the Republicans sweep the down-ballot races.

The culmination of the GOP's ability to out-organize the Democrats online was Republican Scott Brown's upset victory in the special election for the Massachusetts Senate seat formerly held by the late Edward Kennedy. Brown was ultimately able to win this difficult election because of his campaign's successful and dedicated use of direct media.

The Brown campaign utilized a committed approach to text messaging and direct media outlets like Facebook and Twitter to get his message out - unfiltered by the mainstream media. The campaign's use of the hashtag #41stvote - which refers to his promise to be the crucial 41st vote that would stop the health care legislation - helped him gain national attention and support. This, in turn, lead to an extremely successful money bomb which raised more than $1.3 million in a single day.

As I wrote on techRepublican.com the day after the election, Scott Brown's election proves that Republicans have surpassed the Democrats when it comes to online organizing and harnessing the power of direct media. It confirms a record of success we saw in Congressman Joe Wilson's effective response and Governor Bob McDonnell's comprehensive online campaign.

These electoral successes are strong indicators of the Republican Party's command of the Internet, but the GOP's online achievements go further than political campaigns. The GOP's response to yesterday's State of the Union address showcased the innovative ways Republicans are using direct media to include the people in the conversation about policies that will affect their lives.

During the address, GOP Leader John Boehner's blog provided real-time fact-checking of the President's speech. Also during the speech, the NRCC hosted a text2chat program which allowed people from across the country to join the discussion about the policies being presented. This technology has never been used before on this scale and allowed anyone with an Internet-enabled mobile phone to participate from anywhere by simply sending a text message.

Following the State of the Union, Congressman Joe Wilson gave the first-ever live response via Facebook, and answered questions submitted by Facebook users. The NRCC also hosted a streaming video Q&A session after the speech, where users submitted questions that were answered by Republican Members of Congress.

Governor Bob McDonnell's official Republican response to the speech was streamed live where users submitted questions for the Governor and could tweet their thoughts about his speech using the hash tag #SOTUresponse.

There are multiple reasons for the Wilson-McDonnell-Brown trifecta of Republican success and the popularity of Congressional Republicans on direct media sites like Twitter, including Americans' frustration with big government policies like the health care bill. Nevertheless, these victories combined with the GOP's innovative and interactive response to the State of the Union is more proof that the GOP has surpassed the Democrats online.

[This article first ran at The Huffington Post]

On Scott Brown's win

Posted by David All
Wed, 2010-01-20 10:50

Scott Brown’s win last night proves that the American people - even those in extremely blue states like Massachusetts - want real solutions to our nation’s problems. They are tired and frustrated with tax-and-spend policies, like the health care bill, that are being put forth by the Obama administration and the Democrats in Congress that will expand our federal deficit and worsen our nation’s economy.

Importantly, this election also shows that Republicans have surpassed the Democrats when it comes to online organizing and harnessing the power of direct media. It confirms a record of success we saw in Congressman Joe Wilson's effective response and Governor Bob McDonnell's comprehensive online campaign.

The Brown campaign utilized a dedicated approach to text messaging and direct media outlets like Facebook and Twitter to get his message out – unfiltered by the mainstream media. The campaign’s use of the hashtag #41stvote – which refers to his promise to be the crucial 41st vote that would stop the health care legislation - helped him gain national attention and support. This, in turn, lead to an extremely successful money bomb which raised more than $1.3 million in a single day.

Scott Brown was ultimately able to win this difficult election because of his campaign’s successful and dedicated use of direct media. This victory paves the way for more GOP wins in 2010 and sets a strong precedent for future Republican campaigns.

Revolution.

Democrats Asleep at the Wheel; Now Listing Howard Dean as Current Chair (UPDATE: Dems React)

Posted by David All
Wed, 2009-08-26 11:34

UPDATE 6:28 PM: The Democrats have responded to our post finally listing Tim Kaine as its Chairman.

Last week the White House finally pulled the plug on its "fishy" e-mail program after reasonable criticism was heaped on it. (Related: watch my comments on it with CBS' Bob Schieffer.)

Then Fox News' Major Garrett questioned White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs on the White House sending unsolicited emails to folks in support of its health care reform plan. Yep, SPAM.

This past Friday CNN reported that conservatives are trouncing liberals on Twitter. Natch.

And now in perhaps another sign that the "new" media teams for the Democrats are asleep at the wheel and enjoying their vacations, the web site for the Democratic National Committee, Democrats.org, is still listing former DNC Chairman Howard Dean as its current Chairman:

Missing Howard Dean

I know what you're thinking: That this is some static page that is no longer accessible on the web site and I found it randomly. Wrong.

I found it while doing a Google search for "dnc chairman" and it was the top-ranked entry:

Searching for DNC Chairman

Bing has it too:

Howard Dean is the DNC Chairman?

In case you're wondering why Republicans became so old, stale, and technologically inferior when they were in power -- just keep watching the Democrats.

Club for Growth Integrates Twitter to TV Ad

Posted by David All
Wed, 2009-08-19 16:53

Over lunch a few weeks ago, the Club For Growth's blog and gov't affairs guru Andy Roth and I were talking about how Twitter could be integrated to a TV commercial.

We talked about how powerful of a medium Twitter was due to its low-barrier of entry and how a Twitter-based call to action could and should be included in every piece of campaign collateral. Indeed, why not ask folks to engage with your message at all times? To raise their hands and ask for you to follow-up.

Today that conversation is starting to become reality with the Club's latest flight of TV ads on health care which include their Twitter handle in the final screen:

Club For Growth integrates Twitter to TV Ad

Andy Roth offered the following comment, "With a TV ad, there is no direct feedback loop to see how people react to a message. But with Twitter, we give people the instant ability to send us their thoughts. And those thoughts also cascade to their friends and to other people on Twitter. It’s pretty powerful."

It's not exactly what I had envisioned (specific call to action and include a #hashtag) but it's a step in the right direction.

Top 10 Ways to use Facebook to Get Your Message Out

Posted by David All
Tue, 2009-08-18 20:28

In this month's edition of Politics Magazine, Democratic online strategist Jerome Armstrong and I post our Top 10 ways to use Facebook to get your message out.

Below you'll find the first five tips, read the rest at PoliticsMagazine.com:

1. Create a Public Page
Every candidate should have a page on Facebook. You can have an unlimited number of supporters and easily disseminate unfiltered information about your campaign.

2. Add Content
Add videos, notes, blog posts and news articles to your page that your supporters can “like,” share and comment on. These features also allow you to measure which information your supporters care the most about.

3. Update Your Status
As simple as it may seem, updating your status can be an effective way to get your message out to the Facebook community. It shows up in users’ news feeds, and they can share it with other Facebook users.

4. Ask Your Supporter to Donate Their Status
According to Facebook, more than 30 million users update their statuses at least once each day. Develop an application that allows users to update their status with your messaging. This will make your application more prominent on a user’s profile and also show up in their friends’ news feeds, helping to spread your content to other potential supporters.

5. Utilize FBML
Facebook Markup Language allows page developers to create their own applications to feature tools that aren’t available by traditional Facebook applications. With FBML, you can allow users to sign up for email updates and make a donation without leaving Facebook.

Read the full list here.

What tips did we miss?