Page 203 - Information and American Democracy Technology in the Evolution of Political Power

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Political Organizations
organization placed comparatively little emphasis on the Internet as a
means for fund raising or organizing volunteers. The Internet campaign
staff were compartmentalized, disconnected from policy and press oper-
ations, and granted little authority over the messages distributed through
the Internet. In the Bush organization, the Internet was never more than
a modest supplement to traditional media. A Bush campaign official ex-
plained the approach by saying that since an increasing number of people
use the Internet, “it just makes sense to start pushing your message that
way. In campaigns in the past you had your three mediums – your print,
your TV, and your radio – and that was it. That was how you got your
message out there, and now the Internet has blossomed into a very viable
source for distributing your message.” 214 Still, not all media were equal
in the view of the Bush organization, and clearly the Internet was at the
bottom of the stack.
The Gore campaign was more ambitious in its efforts to exploit new
communication channels. The five-person Internet staff was well inte-
grated into the rest of the campaign, reporting directly to the campaign’s
communication director. According to Ben Green, Gore’sDirectorof
Internet Operations, the campaign’s strategy was to use the Internet in
three ways: as a general means for distributing the candidate’s evolving
message, as a way to raise funds, and as a way to “establish a one-to-one
relationship” with supporters. 215 The campaign made a concerted effort
to include Gore’s web address visibly in each televised appearance on
the campaign trail. Where possible, the campaign displayed the address
on each side of podiums and speaking stands, so that photos or video
from any camera angle would be likely to include it. The purpose of this
strategy was to “drive” interested citizens who might see Gore on tele-
vision to visit the web site, where the campaign could engage them and
possibly obtain contact information and other specifics. More than any
other campaign to date, the Gore organization attempted to use “new”
and “old” media together.
Data on traffic to the Gore site shows two elements of citizen use of
the web site. The first is a steady base of activity accelerating gradually
over the course of the campaign, reflecting steadily increasing atten-
tion to the race as election day neared. In addition, citizen use of the

214
Cliff Angelo, e-campaign manager for the Bush campaign, personal interview by
Professor Richard Davis of Brigham Young University, for a related research project,
Oct. 18, 2000, Austin, Texas.
215
Ben Green, director of Internet operations for the Gore campaign, personal interview
with the author, March 1, 2001, Santa Barbara, Calif.
186