Should Internet Access Be a Right?
The internet has become a global tool to interconnect almost anyone who has a computer. At no time in history has human kind been more connected to each other. The global discussions and sharing of ideas has never been so widespread, and the change developed from these discussions has never been so rapid. Given the powerful ability of the internet to connect people, should internet access be a right?
In recent months we have seen the overthrow of dictators in countries such as Egypt, Tunisia, and soon to be Libya. The internet was cited as being instrumental to organize and mobilize people to rebel against the powers that be. The inference brought forth by the use of the internet as a tool of these uprisings, is that the internet is in fact, a tool of democracy.
An even more obvious example of the internet as democratic tool, or anti-democratic in this case, is the throttling and limiting of the internet in China. Although the internet is widely available throughout most of China, it is limited to websites that have been approved by the Chinese government. The suppression of the internet in China is so great that an actual branch of government is devoted to blocking out web sites that do not comply with a lengthy list of criteria. Web monitoring is constant and anti-government posts are usually erased within minutes.
In a world where most people derive their information from public or state run media, a clear threat to democracy exists if the free and full access to the internet is restricted or made illegal. Never in the history of mankind has news ever travelled so quickly. Example after example exists as to how quickly information about natural disasters, governmental overthrows, and just general events are propagated by social media. At issue is not only the speed at which news travels but also the filters it passes through prior to being broadcast. Social media allows all those connected to experience the events of the moment from people at the scene, rather than filtered through the conventional media.
The question is posed as to whether or not free and full internet access should be a right? Demonstrated are three clear examples as to how, in a democratic society, the removal or suppression of this communication tool may cause the eventual loss of democracy as well.
I would like to hear your thoughts about internet access and censorship.
The Political Communication Media
There’s no doubt that the use of Social Media is absolutely necessary in a political campaign, but what about situations where there would be little to no campaign without it? Political communication is crucial for a campaign and what is a candidate to do when the local media outlets (newspaper, TV, and radio) are less than friendly to you or your party?
I know the media is supposed to be unbiased, but we’ve all seen it, more space/time given to one candidate over another. Or articles written poorly about one candidate and glow about another. It happens all the time. There are many reasons why a media outlet would prefer one over another, but if you’re not the preferred one, what are you going to do about it?
Start your own media outlet, that’s what. Through the internet and social media, you can start your own YouTube channel, blog with or without podcasting, Facebook Page, Facebook political discussion group, or forum. Especially now that the technology is just starting to catch on, you can dominate the web war while your competitor is still trying to figure out what a “tweet” is. You could be building relationships with your electorate somewhere around the time your competitors are just figuring out how to spew party jargon across their Facebook profile.
Don’t underestimate the power of the internet and the social media channels. What counts is how they’re set up, and your ability to use them to your advantage. Your best bet is to contact a social media marketer with political experience to learn how you can use social media to your political advantage.
Every Political Campaign Needs a Social Media Manager
In a political campaign team, there’s the candidate, the campaign manager, the volunteer manager, but do you have a Social Media manager? As campaigns move increasingly on to the web, and connecting with constituents through the Internet becomes crucial, every campaign now needs an online manager.
Using social media in a campaign is not about a couple of blog posts, a website, and a few tweets. You will have an online manager with staff, and responsibilities such as (but not limited to):
- Online reputation
- Determining who the players are in the online political field
- Determining where to have a presence
- Becoming a voice in important social media channels
- Monitoring and if necessary, controlling conversations and comments
- Tending to, eliminating, or ignoring online trolls
- Recommending channels for the candidate to personally connect in
- Recording, reporting, and deciphering metrics
- Monitoring the opposition
We were recently part of a campaign with almost all candidates having an online presence. The top three candidates had: website/blogsite, Facebook page (one had a locked profile not a page). Our candidate also had a LinkedIn profile, and a Twitter account. Our candidate’s web site added pages almost weekly, with more and more content as time went on especially near “e” day. He was tweeting three or four times a day with useful messages. His Facebook page was constantly getting comments, and he was commenting back. We were also monitoring important forums and pages. As for the other guys; one did nothing online except set up his channels and not so much as review them for the duration of the campaign. The other had some comments in his Facebook page, a blog of self promotion, and no presence outside of that. Needless to say, our candidate dominated the online media. Oh, and won the election.
I’m not saying that you will win the election if you have a competent online manager, I’m just saying that without one you will be missing out on a huge opportunity to effectively connect with the people that are voting. Your online manager and their staff are responsible both for the message of your online campaign and the messages online about your campaign. A social media marketer experienced in political campaigns can guide your online team to success.
7 Tips to Starting a Political Social Media Campaign
There is no doubt that social media has become a necessary part of any political campaign. Campaign budgets are always tight and social media is probably going to give you the most connections per money spent than any other medium; that is, if you do it right.
There have been numerous examples of how the use of social media and the Internet made a long shot challenger into the campaign victor. So how does a candidate employ the channels available to them to become the overall winner?
7 Tips To Starting a Political Social Media Campaign:
1. Start early. Even if you’re just thinking about getting into politics, start a Twitter account and an open Facebook Profile. Work at making relevant connections. Not having connections in your social media channels is a lot like announcing your intention to run for prime minister of Canada to a huge empty stadium.
Connect and engage with people in the geographic region you’re thinking about politicking in. Show up to special events and demonstrate how active you are in your community. Take pictures and post them online. Basically, use the channels at your disposal to demonstrate yourself as an active and interested member of society.
2. Join groups and online chat boards in your area and be an active member. Tweet about issues that are important to the community and elicit reaction. Be active in the conversation which demonstrates that you have a genuine interest in the community in which you want to serve; getting your name around is crucial.
3. Optimize your social media channels. Make them all interconnect and tweak them for the best keywords. It’s so terribly time consuming having to post the same content multiple times in multiple networks and in multiple channels, so make it all automatic. Take the time to optimize your postings for keywords so your content will be more easily found when someone is looking for the keywords in search engines.
4. Authenticity If you’re not authentic, you can stop here and choose another line of work. The key to social media is authenticity. Your personality has to shine through in your communications. People want to connect with you, the person running for office, not a talking head on the television or YouTube video that looks and sounds an awful lot like a politician. Online is a place where reputation is everything and it takes time to build an online reputation so make it solidly your own.
5. One word: Transparency. I have rekindled my interest in politics recently and I’m following a story about a member of our federal government who made a small edit in a federal document. At first she said she didn’t, and then she said she did. That was over a month ago and the political storm is still raging within the House of Commons. Now, imagine if a politician with a large online following was caught trying to obfuscate the facts, not in front of other politicians, but in front the people who have elected them and are paying them to be there. Again, reputation is everything online and if you’re not transparent about your actions, you can be certain of a non-elected position after the next election.
6. Tweet on Twitter. The new mayor of our city is a social media master. He is authentic and genuine, and he does his best to involve people in his everyday life as mayor of our city. If you’re an interested citizen, you can follow him on twitter and find out that he is actually doing something for the tax dollars we are paying him. Now he’s in council chambers, later he’s at a steering committee meeting, and this evening he’ll be practicing with his punk band for the upcoming Earth Day concert. Never before in history can the average citizen have an insight into the daily life of our political figures on a daily basis. This could be a double edged sword, but if used correctly, you won’t get a reputation of being lazy or getting paid to be a politician and moonlight at your law practice as well; that is, if you’re not.
7. After you win the election, stay connected. Those people who voted you in want to know that you’re doing what they elected you to do, so let them know. Send them pictures of the buffet table at a charity fund raiser, tweet about the difficult negotiations at the budget meeting, post some articles of interest in Facebook. What you’re really doing is securing your victory at the next election.
