So Obama and his people know everything that you do. Actually, McCain and his people know what you do too. Don’t be scared though. They only want to help you. Microtargeting and datamining, similar, but not exactly the same, are nothing new. Politicking has really embraced datamining and targeting so they can try to get your vote, and/or your contribution, but the practice has been used for years, by all kinds of industries. As discussed in Applebee’s America, casino’s do it too. Through the use of loyalty cards, Harrah’s Casino used targeting to learn about and market to its customers

Harrahs’s knows all customer’s age, sex, zip code, and other demographics, as well as how much they bet and win when they play in the casino. It’s LifeTargeting Vegas-style (p. 75).

So all of this data gets crunched, analyzed, and used to help whomever is requesting the information. And it keeps getting bigger and bigger. As the article states

The 5 million people on Obama’s e-mail list are just the start of what political strategists say is one of the most sophisticated voter databases ever built. . . . . It’s an ambitious melding of corporate marketing and grassroots organizing that the Obama campaign sees as a key to winning this fall.

This giant database will allow strategists to target and drill down as deep as they want to find out every little habit and custom of any group of people.

By collecting their own data, then bouncing it against publicly available information like Census reports, voter registration files and other databases, Obama aides can slice the electorate up almost any way they want.

I’ve read the various studies that state that, “a white male from Sheboygan with a masters degree will drink Miller High Life while listening to the Stones.” (I just made that up, but it might be true.) And while I might see some patterns that fit me, I honestly believe that microtargeting does not have a fix on me just yet. Must be those aliases I use. There’s micotargetting, and then there’s WOW microtargetting

For example, aides can track what time you open e-mails from them, and if you show a consistent pattern, they’ll start sending them at around that time of day. “The marginal benefit of sending some people an email at 2 o’clock vs. 3 o’clock vs. 4 o’clock might not make sense [at first],” said Michael Bassik, a Democratic consultant with MSHC Partners.

When the campaign knows what time I open my email, that’s when it gets a little scary to me. And it definitely appears that the Obama people are really perfecting the capabilities of targeting. Though it’s been used before by other campaigns and corporations, there is a new depth that most people probably never would have fathomed. Which kind of makes me scared for what the future might bring!

“It’s not an innovative campaign, but it’s an extraordinarily professional one,” said Zephyr Teachout, who ran Dean’s online organizing. “They’ve taken all our stupid ideas and made them smart.”

I read this article from Business Week today and watched the accompanying videos that went with it. Granted, in the morning I usually quickly scan a story and then read it in depth later. The article is good, but it’s not the important point here. As I scanned the article, I watched the first video and thought it was a funny “love letter” to Obama from some psychotic fan. It is, but it’s from the McCain camp (you can also view the video on his Website). Watch the video below. So what’s it about? I thought it was a humorous look at how the media is gay for Obama. It shows TV journalists, like Tucker Carlson and Chris Matthews, swooning for him. At the end of the video, you see the stamp “Paid for by John McCain 2008.”

Now, I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, poli sci degree notwithstanding: 1) I don’t particularly care for politics and 2) I don’t fully understand politics. If the average person out there views this video, there is no indication that it is from John McCain (unless you watch til the bitter end and see the campaign stamp). Apparently, the message has something to do with McCain whining that the media likes Obama better. Guess what? That might NOT be what the video is about, but that’s what I got out of it. As Joe Average viewer, if that’s what I’m getting out of it, chances are others are too. As the article states

This new “Obama Love” video from the McCain campaign may tickle the nutsy Sean Hannity crowd. But I’m thinking it spells “loser” to independents. C’mon, McCain is bitching because Obama is a better communicator? Because the media is paying extra attention to the first African-American candidate with a serious shot at The White House? One wonders what ads and videos McCain and Schmidt might have run in primary ads if he was up against McCain’s hero Ronald Reagan.

So is this a bit of reverse psychology?? Are we supposed to feel bad for McCain because the media doesn’t love him as much? Damned if I know. Is this supposed to be an ironic video? Again, damned if I know because nobody knows what irony is anyway. (I do know that it’s NOT “like ra-ai-in on your wedding day.”) I guess the moral of the story is that the communications people who pull the strings for the candidates ought to think a little harder about how their message will be perceived. Because as far as I can tell from this video, McCain, like the news journalists, is gay for Obama. Did I get the message right, McCain camp?

BTW–if you don’t get the “gay for” reference, brush up on your Simpsons quotes.

The progression of online media and social networking has done wonders to increase the amount of voter-generated content that political supporters create. Whereas years ago, the most voter-generated content you would see was likely in the form of bumper stickers, buttons, and t-shirts, the Internet now provides a new avenue that anybody can use to add anything they want for the whole world to see. So let’s explore what is out there.

1) Videos–what better way to show your support of a candidate, or better yet, spoof the candidate than video! Most people have heard of Obama Girl, and now the same folks who brought you that video have introduced The Incredible McCain Girl. This video, a spoof on The Incredible Hulk shows news pundits talking about McCain’s anger issues and then shows The Incredible McCain Girl getting angry, a la Hulk, when people make fun of him. It also has a nice fight scene with Obama Girl. So what’s it mean? The Barely Political folks are fond of picking on both parties, and this one gives it pretty good to the Republicans.

2) Facebook–Last week, Obama’s Facebook profile reached 1 million supporters. I did a quick search on Facebook to see what other groups are present–there are hundreds and hundreds of various Obama groups. For all the pages that support Obama, there are also many that are anti-Obama, including this gem. What I found interesting is that the site admin is listed as being in Nicaragua, but the contact lists Washington, DC. And under “news”, I learned these two tidbits: “1) Barack and wife Michelle make in the $500,000s each year. To be true Democrats, they should donate all but 40,000 of it to the poor in order to provide for their living wage, 2) Barack is an admitted cocaine user.” What does it mean? Though it’s great that anybody can use digital media to share their message, anybody can share their message. Including the rabble rousers.

3) Shirts, buttons, and stickers–for those who like to show their political support or disdain the old-fashioned way, there are numerous sites that allow you to design a shirt, sticker, magnet, etc., and get it made, and also sell it to others. Zazzle is a site with millions of options for the consummate political junky. After checking out pages and pages of political merchandise, I kept coming back to this little number. For those too lazy to click the link, the magnet says “WANTED” and shows pictures of Obama, Clinton, and McCain and under them says, “Bros,” “Hoes,” and “GI Joes,” respectively. What does it mean? Many items on the Zazzle site play on the fact that 1) Obama is black, 2) Clinton is a woman, and 3) McCain is old, and was a soldier. This makes for interesting, and sometimes amusing, creations. This site exemplifies Long Tail economics.

4) Radio–Early campaigning progressed via radio. Now radio content can be created by anybody and sent out as Podcasts and other digital files. I scoped out Digital Politics, which was linked from ePolitics. The shows are pretty informative and really cover the whole realm of the convergance between politics and digital media. The Website states

We peel back the layers to reveal how the Internet is changing the way candidates run for office, promote ballot initivatives, and mobilize voters. Join the party at Digital Politics.

This site provides the basics, and the advanced details, of how the politics have really gone digital. At its heart, voter-generated content is hand and hand with the digital convergance of politics. No matter what your affiliation, your likes, your dislikes, there is something out there for you. And if there isn’t, well then, dammit, create your own content!

I love stories about the music that candidates pick to play at their campaign rallies. But I love the stories about the blowback from musicians even more. Musicians often get angry if they find out that a candidate from a party they don’t support is playing their music. Be sure to also read the full article on MSNBC.com.

This article on MSNBC gives a pretty solid rundown of the music choices of some of the candidates from early on in the campaign. I honestly believe that everyone needs a theme song. Obviously, candidates are no different. They often try to find meaning in the lyrics that will somehow relate to their stance on an issue. As an example, the article above states this about Edwards in 2004

During his 2004 campaign, Edwards used John Mellencamp’s “Small Town,” a reminder of the small-town roots of this son of a mill worker.

Often times though, the music gets muddled in some half baked attempt for the candidate to dance to the song. This happens to any type of music, not just an official “campaign” song. Here is Hillary shaking it a bit in Puerto Rico. I’m glad to see she at least has a drink in her hand.

And here’s Barack dancing on the Ellen Degeneres show.

And this is all you get for McCain. I don’t think he dances, so there isn’t footage.

And while we’re at it, here’s a couple songs I think would be funny as campaign music. But that’s simply because I have a twisted mind.

“The Perfect Drug” by Nine Inch Nails

“Smack My Bitch Up” by the Prodigy

“Legalize It” by Peter Tosh (candidate would have a strong chance of winning on this campaign)

“It’s Raining Men” by the Weather Girls (I just learned that this song was written by Paul Shaffer! Who knew.)

See, these would be funny. And they would make politics more interesting.

During the course of the SMICC Web 2.0 conference, speakers have been using the current political race as an example of using new technology. The fact that yesterday was Super Tuesday also gave the discussions more relevance. One speaker mentioned how Obama’s campaign was able to raise millions of dollars by receiving a huge number of little donations. Those little donations quickly added up. This success was, of course, Web driven. That same speaker also mentioned how much the use of the Internet for campaigns has blossomed since the Dean campaign. So fear not, the trailblazers from the Dean days are still remembered

 What else about politics? Here’s an interesting take on what I learned the other night. (And before I begin, these are not my opinions or views. I am merely reporting anecdotal facts from conversations with people.) Monday night I ended up bar hopping with some waiters and bartenders that I met while eating dinner. All in all a very nice bunch of people and we had a blast (though my body didn’t think so the next day!).  Just for some context, here is the makeup of the group. 3 women (white) and 4 men (one Frenchman, one Chinese immigrant, one Mexican who was born in the US, one white). Of the men, one couldn’t vote because he isn’t a US citizen, and the other wasn’t going to vote for reasons known only to him. Every one of these folks were registered Democrats and were very adamant about voting in the Tuesday elections. None of the women were fans of Hillary and didn’t want her to represent the female gender. And in general, all 7 were of the opinion that the US is not ready for either a) a woman president, or b) an African-American president.

Three other women I spoke to at my conference also mentioned that they don’t like the fact that Hillary could be the woman who represents women. They don’t like her stance and find her to be a bad representation of women. Again, these opinions all came from Democrats. I found this very interesting. Of these women, one just got her citizenship last year (she’s Filipino) and was very excited to vote. She told me a great story: When she went to her citizenship ceremony last year she was sitting next to a couple of other women who were being sworn in. One excitedly asked the other, “Are you going to vote now that you’re a legal citizen?” The lady responded, “No.” The first lady was incredulous and told her that she HAS to vote now because it’s her duty as an American citizen.

I enjoyed that because it shows that the folks who work to legally get the right to vote (immigrants, etc.) take it as an honor that they should vote. I believe too many Americans get too complacent about the notion of voting and shirk their duties.  As we all hear and everyone should believe: If you don’t vote, you have ZERO right to voice your opinion about what’s wrong with America. Get out there and get your free sticker and then you can bitch about how the man is keeping you down.

1. Web 2.0 is very relevant to the campaign
2. Dean and his aides are still seen as trailblazers
3. People should vote
4. Anchor Steam is a great beer.

Thank you. This has been your public service announcement for the day.