Boomerang

These days politicians don’t own their own political campaigns. The days of political candidates sending one-way messages to the public are over. Today, anyone with access to the web can spread an idea like wildfire among millions. For instance, the popular anti-Clinton ad posted on YouTube clearly illustrates how one person can have a huge impact on the political landscape.

For several weeks the public didn’t know who created the clip. On the Internet, any creative mind can post to his or her heart’s desire about pretty much anything. The web allows any passionate (and clever!) individual to completely undermine the traditional roles of authority. I take that back – passion and cleverness are not even requirements to have an influential digital voice. All you need is an idea and membership on a social networking site. When the Internet provides a platform to reach millions of viewers with something as simple as a video or an e-mail, there is no denying the power of social media.

Although politicians also leverage social media to bolster their reputations, they are no longer in complete control of their image, brand, or for that matter, digital content. (In case you didn’t know, the same is true for corporations.) Only time will tell how social media will continue to level the new political playing field. In the meantime, I’ll be checking out MySpace’s Impact Channel to read what Hillary and Obama have to say on their personal profile pages. I would like to check out Rudy Giuliani’s page, but at this point the only way to access his content is to send a “friend request.” Wait though: I’m not ready to enter that level of political networking — I mean, social networking — just yet.