Table of Contents

Social Science Computer Review

Volume 25, No. 4

Winter, 2007

Special Issue: Technology and Political Campaigns

Guest Editor: Costas Panagopoulos, Ph.D.

Technology and the Transformation of Political Campaign Communications / Costas Panagopoulos

The Technological Development of Congressional Candidate Websites: How and Why Candidates Use Web Innovations / James N. Druckman, Martin J. Kifer, & Michael Parkin

Abstract: The Internet offers political candidates a new way to campaign. Part of the Internet's novelty comes from technological options not available in most other media. Candidates, however, must weigh various benefits and costs in using a given technological innovation. For example, technology that allows for increased user interactivity may lead to a more stimulating website but it also might distract users from the campaign's central message. In this paper, we use data from 444 congressional campaign websites, over two elections, to examine how candidates approach Web technology. We also investigate the factors that lead candidates to either utilize or avoid particular technological features. We show that technological adoption is determined by both practical and strategic political considerations. Of particular interest is that the competitiveness of a candidate's race leads the candidate to use more sophisticated presentation technologies but less advanced interactive innovations, since these latter options interfere with the candidate's message.

Keywords: campaigns, candidate strategy, web technology, new media, internet campaigning.

Closing the Gap, Raising the Bar: Candidate Web Site Communication in the 2006 Campaigns for Congress / Girish J. Gulati & Christine B. Williams

Abstract: This article examines online campaigning for the U.S. Congress in 2006. Increases in web presence have slowed and appear at or near a plateau, with minor-party candidates closing the gap with major party candidates in Senate races. A content analysis of the campaign web sites of every U.S. Senate (n=114) and House (n=894) candidate reveals that baseline informational web content and features promoting engagement and mobilization have become standardized, but that Senate sites are more sophisticated technologically. Minor-party candidates lagged behind major-party candidates, however, in all forms of content. Multivariate analyses reveal that financial resources underwrite the highest levels of informational and engagement content and constitute a moving hurdle for disadvantaged candidates. Democrats, Greens and challengers demonstrated more interest in relationship building; and the competitiveness of the race increased the likelihood of using the web site for mobilizing supporters. Web site features and functionality that allow citizens to co-produce content and interact in two-way communication with the campaign and each other are not being adopted widely or quickly, and it is an open question whether and how candidates might integrate new social networking tools into their campaign strategies.

Keywords: Campaign web sites, online campaigns, 2006 mid-term elections, U.S. Senate, U.S. House

Trickle-Down Technology? The Use of Computing and Network Technology in State Legislative Campaigns / Chapman Rackaway

Abstract: Does a lag effect exist in the integration of technology into state legislative campaigns? Have state legislative campaigns followed the example of Congressional campaigns and become users of voter files, websites, and other forms of electronic voter communication? Using a survey of state legislative candidates in two states from the 2006 election cycle, I probe candidates on their use of eighteen technological elements. Neither legislative professionalism, party affiliation, professionalism of a campaign, or money raised were significantly related to technology use in campaigns. And technology is not widespread in use for elections to state houses. Campaign success is strongly related to the use of online fundraising, suggesting an incentive for candidates in the future to become more aggressive users of technology.

Keywords: state legislature, campaign, technology

Online Fundraising and Contributors in the 2004 Presidential Campaign / Costas Panagopoulos & Daniel Bergan

Abstract: Online fundraising for political campaigns has grown substantially in recent election cycles, raising new and important questions about how this phenomenon is affecting the composition of the donor pool. In this article, we use data from a survey of donors in the 2004 presidential election to compare the demographic, socioeconomic and political characteristics of online and offline donors. We find mostly similarities between the two donor pools, although online donors tend to be younger and more politically active. The results also show that candidates on the left were more successful at motivating online contributions in 2004.

Keywords: Internet, campaign fundraising, online donors, web technology, campaign strategy

The Ineffectiveness of E-vites to Democracy: Field Experiments Testing the Role of E-Mail on Voter Turnout / David W. Nickerson

Abstract: Political campaigns are just now learning how to put the Internet to best use. This paper conducts seven field experiments containing 161,633 subjects testing whether an email campaign can be effective for voter registration and mobilization. No increase in registration or turnout was detected and the conclusion drawn is that email is not currently a cost-effective means of boosting rates of registration or increasing voter turnout.

Keywords: email, voter mobilization, field experiment, voter turnout

Weblog Campaigning in the German Bundestag Election 2005 / Steffen Albrecht, Maren Lübcke, & Rasco Hartig-Perschke

Abstract: Election campaigns are catalysts for new forms of political communication. They are a field of experimentation for new techniques and technologies to reach target groups and influence voters. The German Bundestag election in 2005 is a case in point. Inspired by the 2004 U.S. presidential election, a new medium of communication was employed for the first time in Germany: weblogs. This paper explores how weblogs were used in the 2005 campaign by different political actors, asking for the impact of weblogs on the mediatized political field. We empirically analyze a sample of 317 weblogs that focused on the campaign. Based on mediatization theory and previous research on campaign weblogs, we examine weblog usage along the dimensions of activity, interactivity and connectedness. The results indicate that the media logic dominating contemporary democracies has a strong impact on weblog use, as attention is primarily drawn to prominent bloggers. But the results also show that weblogs allow new actors to engage in campaign communication and help bridging the ideological divides of the political field. Although these results are limited by the fact that the political blogosphere in Germany is still "under construction," they reveal the potential of weblogs to enrich campaigns.

Keywords: Weblogs, Campaign, Political Communication, Election, Germany, Network Analysis

Note: Two additional symposium articles had to be delayed for space reasons to the 26(3) issue. These are:

Bloggers at the Gates: Ned Lamont, Blogs, and the Rise of Insurgent Candidates / Kevin A Pirch

Voters, MySpace and YouTube: The Impact of Alternative Communication Channels on the 2006 Election Cycle and Beyond / Vassia Gueorguieva

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