Wolf Tracking

For the first time since 1952, no incumbent, (President or Vice President) will be seeking the oval office in 2008. Fresh faces are running and major changes have occurred in news coverage. Major cable news networks have tried to brand their networks as “political media centers,” places where everyone can turn to for the latest breaking news on the 2008 presidential election. We say time flies and sometimes when watching these cable news channels I have to remind myself that it is only August, 2007. To compete with one another, the cable news networks reached out to both political parties to plan, host and televise pre-primary debates in various battleground states throughout the country. Debates have been exciting when its five weeks out from the general election, but debates in general normally follow the same old routines. A moderator, typically a television anchor, puts together numerous questions, posing them in no particular order to the candidates on stage. The cable news networks knew that they had to get creative with their debates. One network stood out. That was CNN. CNN put forth a “YouTube” debate platform, where everyone and their mothers could submit a video question for the candidates and the CNN staff and crew would pass them onto the candidates and disseminate it to the TV audience as well.

CNN turned over a new leaf in presidential debate productions. We are moving toward an engagement age and CNN saw that and embraced it. Viewership was 2,622,000. CNN said the Youtube debate was “the biggest audience since measurements began in 1992 for a cable news debate of those between 18 and 34, the demographic most coveted by advertisers.” Watching the debate I saw a number of classic as well as sensitive questions. One of the best YouTube questions and overall moments of the debate occurred when a man in his said, how will you protect my baby? At first nothing was in the screen except him. So my assumption was that he was talking about protecting youth or education. All of the sudden, I saw him grab something in the corner of the screen. It was an M16. Though shocked, I was eager to see not only the looks on the candidates’ faces, but the responses they would give to this unexpected video question. They did not dodge the question. They had straightforward answers and that is when I knew that CNN had succeeded. CNN embraced the social media, extending an opportunity to anyone with a computer and video computer camera to finally have a chance to get involved in the political debate. That guy put a face on a very sensitive question about the right to bear arms, forcing the candidates to not dodge a response to the image just put up on television screens not only for them to see, but for the viewers at home to see as well. For years, the 18-34 demographic has gotten a reputation for being “highly uninvolved” in the political process. CNN’s YouTube debate re-defined the debate forum and successfully engaged its audience, but more importantly opened the door for more people like you or I to become more engaged in the political process, something that social studies teachers and parents have been urging for years.