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usc

politics

Tea Parties: Conservatives' New Media Launch?

Joshua Sharp

Posted: Apr 19th 2009 12:20AM

Filed under: US Elections, Politics, USC, Media

The "tax day tea parties" this week marked arguably the most visible sign of a conservative uprising since before Bush 43's presidency, with over 300,000 estimated attendees across nearly 350 cities nationwide.

But the larger impact embodied by these protests is a bit more subtle: It shows that conservatives have discovered new media in a very powerful way.

Political campaigns of all ideological viewpoints have long gathered e-mail lists of supporters and built professionally-designed websites to serve as their online presence. But only recently has the Internet evolved to serve as a global town hall, with activists uploading pictures and videos from events held around the world, and networking tool, with registered organizers pooling resources and sharing plans.

In the last election season, both Barack Obama and John McCain created social networking sites and event registration tools in addition to Facebook pages and a YouTube channel. The Obama campaign was more successful with these tools for a variety of reasons (younger base of supporters, ridiculous talent on staff), but the online media landscape is changing so rapidly that conservatives have a real chance at surpassing the most impressive techniques of the '08 cycle.

Beyond the ideological debate behind Wednesday's protests, the fact remains that hundreds of events, sometimes thousands of miles apart, were linked together by the power of social media, as organizers coordinated events online and exchanged pictures (video, stories, etc.) afterward.

More on new media after the jump...
Politico's Jonathan Martin co-moderated a panel Wednesday -- the same day as the tea parties -- with USC Unruh Institute of Politics director Dan Schnur on "Political Organizing in the Internet Age." I served as a panelist alongside some more experienced campaign experts; here are a few highlights:

- Message still paramount. Almost every panelist agreed that campaigns must use new media to reinforce an established, compelling campaign message. Creating an account on Twitter is useless if it does not engage the campaign's followers in a unique and ongoing way.

- 'Day-to-day combat.' Modern campaigns now have to hire extra staff to manage the 24-hour chatter generated by blogs and online news sites like Politico, said Jennifer Palmieri, senior VP of communications at the Center for American Progress. Leslie Miller, senior communications director at Obama for America, noted that Obama's "bitter" comment went viral on a late Friday afternoon, when campaign staff would normally be winding down from a long week. Instead, the campaign was forced into a flurry of action.

The instantaneous speed of modern messaging creates both a challenge and opportunity in the "day-to-day combat" of contemporary politics, added Adam Mendelsohn, former communications director for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Though harmful news can spread like wildfire, a campaign's response can be delivered just as rapidly through similar channels.

- Endless opportunities... to succeed, and to stumble. Palmieri suggested that new media makes each individual interview less important, but I disagreed, noting that George Allen is no longer a presidential contender after a certain "macaca" moment, and Sarah Palin's turkey pardon interview is permanently embedded in the public's memory, thanks to YouTube and other media outlets.

Toward the end of the panel discussion, Schnur pointed out that the former managing editor of USC's student newspaper, the Daily Trojan, was present and live-blogging for a new online media outlet run through the USC Annenberg journalism school. Her shift from print to online, Schnur said, was representative of a greater, global transformation.

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dandee

10:34PM 10:34PM Apr 19th 2009

Why don't some of you Obamabots ask your friends of the same group, WHY did they go to the Tea Parties? I guess that you, along with the ones with the Obama fever are too embarassed that there were so many democrats that came to the parties. IF you saw these people on the TV you could NOT believe those who say ONLY A FEW showed up! IF you didn't see all those thousands and thousands of people that are fed up with this administration blowing our future, then it is your own fault for listening to the ones that refuse to believe what we SAW! Oh yes, THIS was not organized by the Republicans. It was agreed to by Democrats, Republicans and Independents. There are still millions of people that do not want our country taken down the path of socialism because the next move would be communism. If you are old enough you will remember Hitler, IF NOT READ ABOUT HIM!

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Tina

2:32AM 2:32AM Apr 20th 2009

Anyone who trades freedom for security deserves NEITHER. Ben Franklin said that...The liberals want the conservatives to provide security not just for those who are unable to work (conservatives have no problem with that) but they want to provide security (financial and otherwise) for people who are NOT entitled to it. Those would be tne people who breed year after year to keep a check rolling in...Those would be the banks that the liberals keep bailing out. Those would be the people who want to draw unemployment while not trying very hard to get a job (and there are people out there like that). The taxpayer dime should NEVER be used to correct someone else's screw up. If they can't take care of it themselves and don't want to work, I shouldn't have to help them take care of the mess. Cut the ADC and the breeding will stop. Stop giving illegals medical care and dental care ON MY DIME. Use it for American needs. If the bank is failing, nationalize it and get it over with. Why should those of us who vote and pay taxes have to give up our freedom to spend as we please to take care of others' screw ups? Answer: We shouldn't. It was never meant to be like that and our forefathers are rolling in their graves. This new generation is endorsing a new kind of slavery. It's called the socialist agenda and Obama is trying to push it forward full force.

Rating : 3 stars Reply to this commentReport!

harry

7:05AM 7:05AM Apr 20th 2009

ps----i mentioned friday night we had 10,000 in greenville s.c....i forgot to mention on the other side of the property there was a democrat loon rally that had maybe 100 people. pathetic---lol

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karen

8:03AM 8:03AM Apr 20th 2009

they wont post my comments here either. a socialist country feels that the foks who do well in life should hack their earnings to give to the ones who failed to get there on their own. take the money and spread it out evenly for everyone. well why have an american dream? if i make a million a year i have to give over 2/3 away to help the single mother of 5 who cant keep her pant zipped? thats no my idea of an american dream. obama is pushing for a socialist country and by the way dems and rep. were at the tea parties as well as independents. what with the agenda of sayign they were all right wingers? the media is so owned ...im glad i get educated elsewhere. at least i have the real facts.

Rating : 2 stars Reply to this commentReport!

FireEagle

8:48PM 8:48PM Apr 20th 2009

I read your comments..

I agree wholeheartedly with you.

I have paid my mortgage for 25 years and never missed a payment, and now Obama wants to tax me to pay the mortgage on people that can't afford the home and/or do not have a job.

I make less than the $150,000 that he wants to tax but I know I will get it in the end. You can not spend your way out of debit.

As far as the Tea Parties, I went because it was held after work, otherwise I would not have gone. I worked because I want to make sure that the small business that I work for is profitable so that they will be around so that I can have a job.

Do you want to hear something scary?? cap and trade..
You will pay for that one...

Rating : 2.5 stars Report!

Joanne

10:24PM 10:24PM Apr 20th 2009

I also agree. BTW, I posted two other comments. I confirmed them. So far, nothing. We'll see.

Rating : 2 stars Report!

B.D.

1:41PM 1:41PM Apr 20th 2009

FOX is hoping that the Tea Thinkers will give them some middle ground...No one enjoys paying taxes..But for some reason FOX seems to think we all enjoyed letting Bush spend a fortune on his adventures.

Rating : 2 stars Reply to this commentReport!

Joanne

10:07PM 10:07PM Apr 20th 2009

Do you know what you could do with your BUSH (statements)? Let's start with: how about living in the present, like today, April 20, where Obama has to go and "defend" something -- again. Obama's economy measures are crazy, apologizing for America is sickening, and his ties with terrorists (handshakes, curtsies, and now keys to the CIA file cabinets) are scary. Look at the big picture why don't you? Look at what this man's destroyed in less than 100 days and all for his own ego. He's destroyed our sense of security, our sense of optimism and mostly, our sense of trust. BTW, Fox News is blowing away all of the other cable news networks. Go to Nielsen.com and check it out. Fox did give the Tea Parties a shot in the arm. Now it is up to us to continue the movement and be heard. The silent majority is no longer silent!

Rating : 2 stars Report!

FireEagle

8:49PM 8:49PM Apr 20th 2009

I really wish that the Obama could be a source of pride and encouragement to the American People.
Unfortunately, he has elected to take American down the wrong path.

Here are the 25 reasons that I want Obama to fail.

1. I do not want him to release the Gitmo prisoners into the US Court system.
2. I do not want him to increase the country’s debt load that will be depressing our economy for decades or possibly generations to come.
3. I do not want him to implement government controlled health care.
4. I do not want him to appoint income tax criminals or Chicago thugs into the leadership of the country anymore.
5. I do not want him to succeed in hiding his true birth certificate from the American people.
6. I do not want him to control the Auto Companies.
7. I do not want him to control the Banks.
8. I do not want him to control the internet blogs.
9. I do not want him to succeed in creating his “green shirt” citizen’s environmental enforcement Army.
10. I do not want him to succeed in keeping his university records hidden from the American people.
11. I do not want him to succeed in preventing the release of his writings of papers he issued during his “Top Lawyer” position in one of the universities’ Legal Club.
12. I do not want him to succeed in any further splitting of the country by race.
13. I do not want him to succeed in spreading his “I am the world leader” concepts … he is (unfortunately) our president and not the world’s president.
14. I do not want him to succeed in bringing charges against George W. Bush just to satisfy his wacko leftist buddies.
15. I do not want him to succeed in implementing the “fairness doctrine” that will stop all free speech in America.
16. I do not want him to succeed in implementing the “second stimulus bill” scheduled for later this summer.
17. I do not want him to appoint “czars” to head up departments directly reporting to him… like the “car czar” and the “green czar” as they are not approved by congress.
18. I do not want him to succeed in changing our capitalistic society. Used for 300 years to become the greatest county in the world and does not need to be changed.
19. I do not want him to succeed in giving the ACORN group the $5,000,000,000 to do more damage to our inner cities.
20.I do not want him to pass the proposed federal "hate crimes" law that could lead to the criminalization of the biblical view of homosexuality in sermons and elsewhere.
21. I do not want him to tax small businesses that employee 3 out of every 4 Americans, thus causing more people on unemployment because they will not hire as many employees.
22. I do not want him to create anger and resentment amount our allies around the world.
23. I do not want him to succeed regulating what salary you and I make simply because we accept government subsidies or bailout funds.
24. I do not want him to succeed in passing HR875 that requires all people with home gardens to get a permit and allow unwarranted searches of their property.
25. I do not want him to succeed in rewriting the tax code by moving the first tier on the table from $150 to $0 so that employers are required to withhold money from the first check you receive which will hurt the poor and the newly employed.