From headquarters to cyberquarters, the means of reaching out to voters expanded immensely in this year’s local elections as compared to past elections. Even prior to the campaign period, candidates have setup their own fan pages in social networking sites, like Facebook and Twitter. It is also no secret that campaign videos, such as “Di Ka Nag-iisa” of the Yellow Brigade, were spreading the net even before it reached television sets.
According to demographics, the Internet is commonly visited by persons ages 18 to 29, which is the age group most reliant on cyberspace for information. Couple this fact with the increased awareness and participation of the youth in the elections, the Internet has evolved into a bloody battle ground for obtaining votes. The candidate who packages himself/herself as the most technology savvy candidate has an advantage in getting the votes of this age group. As a result, candidate’s ideas, platforms, and accomplishments are available for display and discussion in different websites. Even Presidential Fora are shown livestream in the Internet.
Because of the immense influence of the Internet in the campaign, the COMELEC should adopt rules regulating cyber campaigning. Absent these rules, the candidates can take advantage of the Internet in spreading their campaign.
2 comments:
10th entry
like the problem of most us pres candidates - even though the internet is such a powerful tool and reaches the demographic of 18-29, how can you translate them to votes? most people in that demographic do not vote or worse, not registered. and that was what obama did. he made sure the youth got out of their houses and apathy and voted when it counted. i hope that's what our candidates are also focusing on.
Post a Comment