Senator McCain, Social media genius?

[Bateluer]

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/08/20/study-mccain-is-a-social-media-genius/

I recall during the 2008 presidential elections, and shortly after, people were claiming that the GOP was out of touch with voters and the digital generations because they weren't using social media as much as their democratic counter parts.

I've been following Senator McCain, and his daughter Meghan, on Twitter now for some time and its been interesting. Whether you agree with their politics or not, its a good way to get involved with the democratic process. From McCain's tweets, I can follow his interviews, appearances, etc, and gain a better knowledge of where he stands as a politician.

Senator McCain sends out a lot of tweets too, news articles that support his positions, times/locations of interviews, tours, town hall meetings, etc. Usually several per day.

Meghan McCain sends out a lot of tweets as well, though a large percentage of hers aren't political in nature. Can't wait for her book to come out at the end of the month, Dirty Sexy Politics looks like it'll be an interesting read.

(CNN) – At nearly 74 years old, Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, might not be the first person to come to mind when you're asked to name a social media "genius." But according to a new joint study, he is just that–the U.S. senator most adept at using social media.

New York University professor Scott Galloway and George Washington University School of Business dean Doug Guthrie ranked all 100 U.S. senators based on what they call the lawmakers' "digital IQ." The score is derived from a combination of metrics culled from each senator's activity on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, political blogs and their own congressional website.

Republican Sens. Jim DeMint and Scott Brown took a close second and third behind McCain, with Sen. Al Franken–the Senate's most social media-savvy Democrat–coming in at number four.

McCain's digital IQ of 156 was enough for researchers to classify him as a "genius." DeMint, Brown and Franken are also in the genius category, with IQs of 154, 152 and 143.

Republicans average 5.5 points higher than Democrats, according to the study. Their IQs also grew faster, as members of the GOP saw 6.7 percent month-over-month growth on Facebook versus just 3.6 percent for Democrats.

"President Obama pioneered the social media trail. However, Republicans are blazing it," the headline of the study's introduction says.

The analysis found that the 10 most conservative Republicans–according to their voting records–have a higher average digital IQ than the rest of their party, while the 14 most liberal Democrats lag behind their party.

"If social media is the temperature of the digital domain, it may be an especially cold fall for Democrats," the study's authors write in the report.

The non-partisan think tank L2 released the report, "Digital IQ Index: U.S. Senate" on Thursday.

 

[Kappo]

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/08/20/study-mccain-is-a-social-media-genius/

I recall during the 2008 presidential elections, and shortly after, people were claiming that the GOP was out of touch with voters and the digital generations because they weren't using social media as much as their democratic counter parts.

I've been following Senator McCain, and his daughter Meghan, on Twitter now for some time and its been interesting. Whether you agree with their politics or not, its a good way to get involved with the democratic process. From McCain's tweets, I can follow his interviews, appearances, etc, and gain a better knowledge of where he stands as a politician.

Senator McCain sends out a lot of tweets too, news articles that support his positions, times/locations of interviews, tours, town hall meetings, etc. Usually several per day.

Meghan McCain sends out a lot of tweets as well, though a large percentage of hers aren't political in nature. Can't wait for her book to come out at the end of the month, Dirty Sexy Politics looks like it'll be an interesting read.

I wouldn't exactly call it "genius" when even the most self-absorbed emo teeniebopper can have 500 friends on Facebook.

He's using the tools wisely, and it may be new in the political arena (although Obama did a VERY good job pioneering that), but genius or revolutionary it isn't :|

 

[BoomerD]

I think it's almost impossible to use "McCain" and "genius" in the same sentence without something like "is not" in between.

I'd say this is more the brainchild of his staff who has their eyes open enough to see what types of media is attracting the most young people.

 

[Bateluer]

I think it's almost impossible to use "McCain" and "genius" in the same sentence without something like "is not" in between.

I'd say this is more the brainchild of his staff who has their eyes open enough to see what types of media is attracting the most young people.

You may like not McCain, but you cannot deny that social media, like Twitter, is a good way to get involved. Lets face it, printed media is dying. If you were to print the local times that politicians would be debating on TV or holding town hall meetings in the local paper, how many people would you reach? How many people would you reach if those same politicians tweeted that information, and were to stream it live?

Pretty sure Senator McCain is going to win his re-election campaign in AZ. His conservative competitor, Hayworth, is floundering.

 

[HappyPuppy]

McCain is never, ever, going to be President. He is too far gone. I appreciate his service and incarceration, but he has used those cards too many times in the past. Screw him.

 

[BoomerD]

You may like not McCain, but you cannot deny that social media, like Twitter, is a good way to get involved. Lets face it, printed media is dying. If you were to print the local times that politicians would be debating on TV or holding town hall meetings in the local paper, how many people would you reach? How many people would you reach if those same politicians tweeted that information, and were to stream it live?

Pretty sure Senator McCain is going to win his re-election campaign in AZ. His conservative competitor, Hayworth, is floundering.

I'm not arguing the wisdom of using such media, nor that he'll likely get re-elected, merely that McCain shouldn't be considered a genius...

I actually LIKE McCain. I lost a ton of respect for him when he let the Bushies run roughshod over him a few years back. IMO, it shows that whatever backbone he may have had has long since withered away, and he'll do anything to stay in the public eye.

 

[Bateluer]

I'm not arguing the wisdom of using such media, nor that he'll likely get re-elected, merely that McCain shouldn't be considered a genius...

I actually LIKE McCain. I lost a ton of respect for him when he let the Bushies run roughshod over him a few years back. IMO, it shows that whatever backbone he may have had has long since withered away, and he'll do anything to stay in the public eye.

I can't disagree with that, didn't much care for it myself. Still, he's light years better than his competition in the AZ senate race. The AZ Libertarian party has candidates on the ballet, but realistically, they don't stand a chance.

 

[BoomerD]

My wife and I have considered moving to Arizona. We love Prescott...not as hot as Phoenix, not as crowded, gets a bit of snow in the winter, etc., but with the housing market here in Kahleeforneeya, we're stuck for the time being...but we've had enough...we've been here 23 years...it's time to bid Kahleeforneeya "hasta la vista."

 

[Bateluer]

My wife and I have considered moving to Arizona. We love Prescott...not as hot as Phoenix, not as crowded, gets a bit of snow in the winter, etc., but with the housing market here in Kahleeforneeya, we're stuck for the time being...but we've had enough...we've been here 23 years...it's time to bid Kahleeforneeya "hasta la vista."

Prescott is nice, did the Whiskey Row Marathon there last year, loved it. Need to try go do it again this year. Housing is cheap through out AZ though.

 

[jackschmittusa]

Never saw a point to Twitter for me. No need to be bombarded by boatloads of minutiae and expend the effort to sort any wheat from all of the chaff.

 

[senseamp]

The sad thing is our media is more interested in how and where people say things instead of WHAT it is they are saying. How about actually reporting and analyzing the positions candidates tweet about, wouldn't that be a better service to the voters than saying what sites they use?

 

[BoomerD]

The sad thing is our media is more interested in how and where people say things instead of WHAT it is they are saying. How about actually reporting and analyzing the positions candidates tweet about, wouldn't that be a better service to the voters than saying what sites they use?

That'd be pretty tough... and would take a huge staff.

Most politicians use 6 bazillion words to say absolutely nothing.

 

[Lemon law]

Tweeting McCain is sort of like waltzing Matilda to the billabong.

But still as a democrat I can't summon up any hate of McCain, he may be a sixteen carrot phony, among a pack of 24 carrot GOP phonies. McCain has always had some of the right stuff. While being totally clueless in other areas. In 2000 he would have been a better alternative to GWB, but now he is way too old.

But still, when a final history is written, John McCain will still stand far higher than GWB. And what GWB did to McCain in 2000 is beyond despicable.

But now character assignation is the norm in American politics. And instead of us American people doing the right thing and ripping into the character assassins, we elect them instead.

 

[MikeMike]

Well, you all do know why the Republicans are faster at learning how to use social media right?

Spoiler

How else do they find young boys, and child porn?

 

[Painman]

 

[Painman]

Blargh.

 

[Thump553]

There have been many computer trends I've hopped on early - heck I had an Atari 400 when it was neck and neck rivals with Apple). Facebook and twitter to me seem to be very dumb trends, with twitter especially being a useless flavor of the month. Twitter is for those who can't get enough of the People magazine/ET culture.

Twitter and facebook are especially inclined to reinforce existing viewpoints rather than (heaven forbid) having an honest and intelligent discussion of opinons and options. As such I seem them supporting the continuing trend towards political stratification.