A look at how social media played a role in the 2008 presidential election.

1. Journal of New Communication Research
Emily Metzgar
Indiana University
Albert Maruggi
Society of New Communications Research

2.  132,645,504 American’s voted
 46% of Americans used the internet, email or a cell
phone to get information about the campaign
 35% of Americans watched a political video online
 10% used MySpace and Facebook to learn about a
candidates

3.  Mass Communication is changing
• SMCR (one-way model) is fading
• Audience is no longer in isolation
• Audience is shifting from only media consumers to producers
• ANYONE at ANY TIME can be a journalist
 Agenda Setting
• The media uses frames to ensure all reported news fits into
established narratives
• Stories can go unreported that do not fit the narrative
• Social media is guiding mass media in directions they might not
have chosen
• Is traditional or social media setting the agenda now?

4.  Socialmedia’s effect the 2008 presidential
election
.
 Rolesocial media played in the topics reported
on by traditional news outlets
 Issues being discussed on both platforms

5.  Constant comparative method
 Radian6: tool to track assess social and traditional
media
 Quantitative look at the difference between social
media & traditional media coverage during the
election
 3 parameters for comparison
1. Candidate mentions
2. Top issues
3. Key words from debates

6.  Facebook (fans)
• Obama 2,379,102
• McCain 620,359
 Twitter (followers)
• Obama 112,474
• McCain 4,603
 YouTube (channel views)
• Obama 18,000,000
• McCain 2,000,000

7. 09/04/08 – 11/03/08

8. 09/04/08 – 11/03/08

9. “Joe the Plumber”

10. 1. Mechanism for ongoing engagement
2. Issues were given equal coverage
3. Traditional & social media coverage
converged
4. Difficult to identify where issues emerged
first

11.  Mentions
 Print
news not accounted for
 Radio news not accounted for
 News outlets

12.  People feel differently about the issue, but not on
what issues are important
 Distinction between social media and traditional
journalists is disappearing
 Highly relevant and cost-effective
 Communal nature
 Message must resonate

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