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American Journal of Arts and Communication
Vol. 8 No. 4 (2023): July-August
Original Articles

RESHAPING DEMOCRACY: THE IMPACT OF WEB 2.0 ON U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS"

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  • Sarah E. Mitchell ,
  • Michael J. Anderson
Sarah E. Mitchell
Yale Law School
Michael J. Anderson
University of Washington

Published 2023-09-21

Keywords

  • Barack Obama,
  • presidential campaign,
  • digital communication

How to Cite

Mitchell , S. E., & Anderson, M. J. (2023). RESHAPING DEMOCRACY: THE IMPACT OF WEB 2.0 ON U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS" . American Journal of Arts and Communication, 8(4), 23–41. Retrieved from http://topjournals.org/index.php/AJAC/article/view/211

Copyright (c) 2023 American Journal of Arts and Communication

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Abstract

In the run-up to the 2008 presidential election, the Barack Obama campaign harnessed the power of digital communication to mobilize millions of supporters. This article delves into the transformative impact of technology on political campaigns, focusing on the shift from static websites to the dynamic realm of "Web 2.0." The campaign's use of social technologies, epitomized by MyBarackObama.com (MyBO), created an unprecedented level of citizen engagement.

Campaign Manager David Plouffe's message to early supporters exemplified this movement, highlighting the vital role played by millions of citizens who rallied from the grassroots level. The campaign leveraged a wide array of digital tools, including its own social networking platform, MyBO, and popular commercial platforms like Facebook and MySpace. This multifaceted approach empowered supporters to organize fundraising events, canvass their communities, and collaborate on an unprecedented scale.

This study explores the intricate web of connections that underpinned the Obama campaign, challenging traditional campaign structures. It highlights the profound influence of technology in fostering voter-to-voter interactions, with media theorist Henry Jenkins aptly characterizing the campaign as centered on connections between voters. The research sheds light on how digital communication redefined political engagement in the 21st century.

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