From Dean to Obama: How Electoral Politics is Changing

DPI-665Politics of the Internet

Feb 29, 2012

“How Electoral Politics is Being Changed”

Micah L. Sifry

Audio: http://bit.ly/wtcA9O

CC-BY-NC-SA

Topics for discussion

• How did the Dean campaign use the Internet to tap into “network effects”?

• What do Phil de Vellis and Joe Anthony represent, as new actors in campaign organizing?

• What is the difference between distributed work and decentralized power?

Dean campaign background

• Youthful, desperate, “nothing to lose”

• Joe Trippi, campaign manager, had dabbled in online communities

• Rise of the “netroots” in 2002-03

• Dems were searching for a viable anti-war presidential candidate

Other reinforcers

Hyper-empowerment

• Joe Anthony, super-volunteer

• Phil de Vellis, super-messenger

Obama tools

Food for thought

• What is the difference between distributed work and decentralized power?

• Who was empowered by the Obama 2008 campaign?