Web Campaigning by Kirsten Foot and Steven Schneider

As the 2008 campaign continues, I thought I would make note of a recent book, Web Campaigning, by Kirsten Foot and Steven Schneider that folks might be interested in. The book uses a broad constellation of data on websites from various levels of races to trace how campaigns have been using websites and Internet-enabled tools.

They find broad differences in how sites use the technology but interesting important themes. For instance, the authors trace the tension campaigns face between using a very participatory technology in ways that seem authentic to users who are accustomed to the seemingly organic emergence of interaction online versus the premium that is placed inside political campaigns on controlling messages, interactions, and environments. The battle between controlling the message and taking advantage of opportunities for reaching new audiences and existing audiences in different ways rings true to many observers and former participants in campaigns. While written before the 2008 campaign got into action, the book is a great read for those interested in politics online, and elections in particular. Here are links to the publisher, MIT Press, and to the book on Amazon in case you want to learn more:

http://mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?ttype=2&tid=11005
http://www.amazon.com/Campaigning-Acting-Technology-Kirsten-Foot/dp/0262...