Internet Announcements Unlikely to Alter Campaign Strategies, Duke Expert Says
"The fact that candidates are using the Internet is an attempt to show that they have a connection to the sexy online world, but they are going to spend a ton on television advertising," says Ken Rogerson
The online campaign announcements of Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama show that serious candidates must use the Internet to promote themselves, but the new technology is unlikely to drastically change the way politicians campaign, says a Duke University expert on technology, politics and policy.
"They can't not do it," said Kenneth Rogerson, research director of the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media and Democracy at Duke's Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy. "But it's still not going to be the bulk of what they do to promote themselves and advertise. I'm still skeptical that it's going to be life-changing in the next two years."
New media are unlikely to surpass traditional avenues such as television in the near future, in part because access to high-speed Internet is not widespread enough to supplant traditional media, he said.
"The fact that candidates are using the Internet is an attempt to show that they have a connection to the sexy online world, but they are going to spend a ton on television advertising," Rogerson said. "In the long run, they're going to fall back on the old media. That's still the best way to reach the largest percentage of the population."
Rogerson also said that quick access to online media can hurt candidates.
Howard Dean effectively used the Internet to propel his campaign in 2004, but the famous video of the "Dean scream" also damaged him. And earlier this month, potential presidential candidate Mitt Romney was forced to respond to a 1994 video clip, recently posted on YouTube, which contradicts some of his current positions.
Despite its limitations, Rogerson predicts candidates will continue to use new technologies as they emerge.
"They need to make a dynamic and appealing web presence a priority in their campaigns. They have to," Rogerson said. "If they don't use the technology and if their websites are not updated, people will say, ‘You aren't a serious candidate.'"