Collaboration Activity
Social Media Impact on World Events
A significant national event that social media has taken an active role in has been the ‘national elections.’ Indeed, in many elections, social media has had a significant effect on voter’s perceptions, especially in affirming and reinforcing existing beliefs and attitudes that are already existing. The national elections of 2008, where Barack Obama was elected as America’s first black president, exemplified the role of social media in the proceedings. This was an election of its kind, as it involved the first black presidential nominee and a budding period for social media.
As part of his presidential campaign strategy, Mr Obama’s team leveraged on the growing popularity of social media, especially on Facebook and Twitter. Twitter, which did not exist before then, was successfully integrated into president Obama’s campaign. Before then, voting was mostly traditional (where it was considered a private decision). However, it was during these elections that millions of voters took publicly to express their political support or contempt for the presidential candidates. Moreover, social media also revolutionized communication, especially between leaders and their supporters. For instance, in the said 2008 elections, President Obama expressed his gratitude for the support via Twitter, something which had never happened before.
Since then, Twitter has been used as the ‘go-to’ social media channel for official communication. In these elections, social media was used to sway voter’s perception, and build momentum for President Obama’s campaign. Twitter was used as an advertising tool, especially for the digital conscious citizens, and this created a positive impact on the Obama campaign in general. Indeed, social media had a lot to contribute to the success of his presidential bid.