Political Parties have changed dramatically since the development of the Federalist party directly following the ratification of the Constitution. While third parties have existed for most of American history our political system has been primarily dominated by two parties at a time creating the "two party system." Today's Democrats and Republicans (GOP) are very different from members of their respective parties from generations past, and their goals and make up changes based on their political and electoral goals and the changing times. Take a look at each national party website to get a sense of how they are presenting themselves today.
Republican Party Webpage
Democratic Party Webpage
(note that you do not need to add your e mail to enter either party webpage, you can skip it and go to the main page)
Interest groups, on the other hand, come in all shapes and sizes. They may organize around particular groups of people, businesses or institutions, or groups organized around supporting certain issues. These groups attempt to influence the government by utilizing most of the forms of political participation that we discussed earlier in the quarter. Just to get a sense of some examples of interest groups which are very active in American Politics today that a look at these sites (check out the "about us" sections if you aren't familiar with these organizations):
AARP (formerly the American Association of Retired Persons)
AIPAC
NRA (National Rifle Association)
Moveon.org
The Christian Coalition
The Sierra Club
As you evaluate the various methods of political involvement and different strategies to influence American politics you may want to address the following questions:
- Which party/interest group seems to be offering a more effective online strategy for gaining and organizing supporters? Why? What could they do better?
- What do you think is the most effective strategy to achieve political goals: political parties, interest groups? Why?
The first thing I noticed right off the bat when viewing the Republican Party page was Obama's name, which I found slightly ironic since obviously they are not supporters of Obama. The second thing I noticed was the big section in the middle of the page asking supporters to donate. From those two things alone it was not hard to see what the Republican Party's goal is; get rid of Obama and do so by raising money for our next candidate. The Democratic Party Webpage on the other hand seemed very organized to me and more like a Tumblr page than a political party webpage.
ReplyDeleteThe interest group webpages were a bit more unorganized and I think that goes to show just where the importance is placed in our society. The big political parties are viewed as the top dogs. All other interest groups would be smart to fall beneath those but in their prospective category. While I think being a part of an interest group is effective, the ones listed are some of the largest in the nation. There a hundreds of others that do not receive the recoginition these groups do and therefore I think political parties are a better strategy to achieve a political goal.
Though both the Democratic and Republican national websites are appealing on the surface, the Good Old Party seems to lack efficient functionality in their layout. As the Democratic Party organizes their site with clear headings, primed for investigation, the republican website lays flat and less informative. By identifying their party’s stance on the main issues at hand, the history of the organization, the demographics they serve, and any upcoming elections, the Democratic website is user-friendly. The GOP site lacks flare and is harder to navigate. The Democratic site is more welcoming and far more extensive on current affairs and issues. These small aesthetic differences speak to what audience each party is speaking to. The GOP’s most recent blog post is before the presidential election, while the Democrats posted yesterday. Possibly the Republican organizers do not have an internet-crazed fan base, as from the past election data suggests, their voting demographic is largely an older population. The most effective strategy for a political party, slightly apparent by the two websites, is appealing to their constituency. The current state of politics in the United States seems to favor Democrats, as they seem to be reaching out to many different demographics. As the Democratic website focuses on educating a younger, more inclusive, voting base, they seem to be preparing for the future. The Republican party continues to support the more wealthy, older, population, which seems to be a limited strategy, and a bit ineffective.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Ben is saying, and the Democratic party's website is more aesthetically pleasing and attractive, but I think it's also more successful due to the difference in the messages on each of the sites. The GOP's website broadcasts negative or pessimistic headlines like "Hold Him Accountable" referring to President Obama, essentially saying he's going to make mistakes, and followers of the Republican party need him to be held to those mistakes. The Democratic website on the other hand headlines that they're striving to end the gun control debate and allows you to look more into Obama's proposals. Even though there is a blog post with a jab at the GOP party, for the most part, their website shows a more positive outlook on the direction of the country, which I feel is what a lot of younger voters want to see. I absolutely agree when you say that the way the party is built is by appealing to their constituents, but I feel like when it comes down to trying to sway new voters who are on the fence about their political beliefs, the Democratic party is at more of an advantage if we're just looking at how the present themselves through their website. To answer the initial blog question, I think the Democrats have a more effective online strategy, but obviously that's not the only way to judge who reaches out better.
DeleteI think the most effective way to achieve political goals is to have interest groups sponsored by political parties, because members of those interest groups can find a firmer political identity if they associate themselves with that group. For instance, the interest group that stood out to me was AARP, because I know my parents are both involved in it. Reading through the group's political beliefs was interesting because of how much of it aligned with what I know my parents' beliefs to be. That could be coincidence, especially because AARP defines themselves as non-partisan, but it's interesting to look at and see if people's activity within interests groups really does play into the way they view politics.
Viewing the Democratic and Republic websites proved to be interesting. The information presented on the Democratic Website was of the President's own timeline. There are videos of Obama giving speeches and talking to the public about the "fiscal cliff." Topics concerning the people are delivered in a clean, neat and respectful manner. I say clean, neat and respectful because the Republican website seems to focus their attention on Barack Obama, just like Maggie mentioned. The Republican site is more concerned about "holding him accountable" versus showing their mission and empowering themselves through news. They empower themselves through donations and bashing Barack Obama. They made donations their number one priority. Yes, the Democratic has a "donate" section but it is not on the home page. It would help the Republican website to give more information on their own views on the Home Page. It is a bit boring and doesn't really interest me to keep searching through their site. As for the interest groups, they all look organized and designed very effectively, except the NRA site. Their site does not seem like a website. The obvious colors are black and white which adds no appeal to their association.
ReplyDeleteAlthough the interest groups sites were appealing to the eye, the most effective one for me is the Democratic website. I probably got convinced to choose their site as the best because of the colors actually. People are often searching for the thing that attracts their attention. The use of their light blue, white, and a bit of red shows their soft but informational tone. The Democratic party website showed me information not only with print, but videos too. Everyone likes videos! The connection to Twitter is also important because they know the social networks play a large role in our society. The ability to gain knowledge about political issues through Twitter shows that the Democratic party are for the people.
After going through all the parties/interest groups, I noticed an imbalance in relaying information. I didn’t know much about any of the interest groups, and some made it easier to find an “about” or “issues” page to see their stance on some of those topics, while others required me to make inferences about what these groups were. To see just how much I could find out about each group, I gave myself 5 minutes on each website to find out as much information as I could, to prove just how clear the site was for other wandering folks like me. As for the parties, I clicked on one of them randomly and went directly to the “Our Party” page, and it wasn’t until I got to the end of the page that I realized I was on the Republican website. The Democrat page was a bit more informative, and I knew immediately what the party stood for and what they supported. I think that if the goal is to get people to “pick a side,” easy access to information is crucial. I’m one of the many people who don’t have much time (let’s face it, it’s a busy world), and getting quick, succinct information is a great way to start getting people up to date, or listening, at the very least. I particularly liked the way Moveon.org would pop up windows so you could sign a petition with a simple click- often times a cause people aren’t even aware about. Basically, ease of access to information and how to take action is one of the best ways to connect with a non-stop, little time, busy society.
ReplyDeleteI think that in order to be efficient, the democratic parties are a more effective way to get around things. They have a much bigger presence in the political world- I didn’t even know about the Sierra Club or the Christian Coalition until I read this blog- and envelope a lot of the main ideas that these smaller interest groups are fighting for. These interest groups are important though because they act as a guide or a filter to picking the right party. For example, if I was strongly in favor of the Sierra Club’s stance on the environment, I would be led more so toward the Democratic view, etc.
I agree that having easy access to navigate through a website to get the most information and understand what the party stands for is essential especially if you are on a busy schedule. I never really knew that interest groups could sway someone to vote a particular way but now that I think about it; it could have an effect on the way someone picks a political party based off of the parties’ intentions. So the political party and interest groups kind of go hand and hand in a way.
DeleteAfter viewing the Republican and Democratic Parties websites, you can definitely see different online strategies. When you view the Republicans website you start at the main page with the top stories and then there are tabs that you can click on for further details. Although the blogs are updated the Trending Topics section is not, is only has posts from October before the election. On the other hand when you look at the Democratic webpage the latest news is on the main page along with the top stories. The website is also well organized with tabs, it also has many sub tabs too which is helpful when looking for a specific topic. Both of these pages had a section asking for donations or to volunteer, it also had ways to connect on Facebook or Twitter. Overall, I think both parties did a good job with their websites, they both had a different layout but fairly the same topics and sections. I found the Democratic website to be more appealing because I like how the blogs looked like Tumblr’s layout.
ReplyDeleteThe interest groups websites weren’t as appealing as the Democratic and Republicans webpages. I felt like their layout was all over the place and you had to sit there and search for the link on the page instead of looking at the tabs for easier classification.
Once I looked at all of these websites, I think for a website to be effective you need to be organized, appealing, and updated. Starting with organized, I think tabs and sub tabs are a great way to break down the topics so people can find information easier. I think the website also has to be appealing with pictures, colors, and easy to read font. Lastly, the website should be updated with current news on what is going on. I feel it is unprofessional to not be updated because if you want to appeal to people you need to let them know what is going on.
I believe that most individuals are attracted to a website more based on what they see first or the biggest things that are being displayed that are current then look through the rest of a website. With that being said I believe that the party that seems to offer a more effective online strategy for gaining and organizing supporter are the Democrats. I feel this way because they are focusing on the political issues that President Obama is focusing and the Country is most concerned about now by displaying them more visually on the website. On the other hand the Republicans website do not show much support as the Democrats for the President and the moves that are trying to go into effect more presently now instead I see more focus on social issues. For example, “Fighting for a better America or Growth and Opportunity” are more visually displayed. However, the Republicans do provide information on current issues in a smaller section of the website. I believe that Republicans could do a better job on voicing their opinions about current issues better by having them more visually displayed and bigger on the screen to attract more people first.
ReplyDeleteI believe the most effective strategy to achieve political goals is to have both political parties and interest groups because they all focus on the various views of America. I believe that America is diverse in the ways they want to make America better and have different things they like to work for so by having different interest groups allows various American to unite in different ways. I believe a country needs to have various things to stay strong and productive so by implementing parties and interest groups are able to voice and put into effect different views of Americans that could gradually aid progression.
There is no question that the Democratic Party's web page is more user-friendly and overall more "attractive" and interesting to the viewer than the Republican Party's web page. As Maggie pointed out, the Democratic Party has adopted the Tumblr platform - Tumblr being a very popular social website for adolescents and young adults. This is yet another point that proves what I was hinting at last week in the blog - in our country today, the Republican Party simply cannot compete with the Democrats because of who they have and how they run their strategy. They are unable to effectively communicate their message with the rest of the country, and a little thing like comparing a website to another proves it. The Democrats know that the majority of people who are internet savvy today are adolescents and young adults. So what do they do? The model their website after a very successful social media page to make themselves more appealing and connect with the younger people. It's an awesome strategy and it works. To be competitive in the future, the Republicans really do need to get it together.
ReplyDeleteWhat caught my attention right away was the difference between the tones on both sides. The democratic site had a positive tone, whereas the republican site was rather negative. The header of the republicans was: “hold him accountable. Help us” (with a picture of Obama). I found this header rather negative. The democratic site had a way more positive appearance. Of course this has to do with the victory of Obama and I am sure that the same would have happened when Romney would have won.
ReplyDeleteAs in attractiveness, I completely agree with Thomas Halter. The democratic site is more user-friendly than the republicans’. I think the republicans lose the younger voters because of this. So to have a more equal competition in this digital era, the republicans need to renew their site.
I agree with what Tiffany said about the Democratic Party’s page being well organized. The Democratic website has a very clear organization of the issues and tons of information on the individual issues. I really think the Democratic Party’s “The issues” section is really helpful. I clicked on women and a video came up along with all relevant blog and news on the issue, along with some facts as well. I think it is helpful for supporters who are not very informed but seek to be informed or for people who just want the update on what is happening with an issue close to them. I found that the Republican Party’s website had very vague descriptions of their beliefs on their “Our Party” page of their website. I feel this may be because they have a large amount of support in older generations as where Democrats have support in younger voters who are more technologically savvy as my classmates have pointed out. Something I agree with. Due to these factors I think the Democratic Party’s page is more effective than the Republican Party’s website. I think if the Republican Party wants to increase their support they need to begin with making their beliefs more known and available. I feel it is the small things that make supporters want to continue to backing their parties. Things like a website. It shows that communication with their followers is important to them and that means a lot. Maintaining a website as large as the Democratic Party’s site cannot be a simple task, so it shows that the big government is still looking out for their supporters.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the democrats had a more welcoming home page while the republicans seemed to be more demanding. I noticed that the Republicans were asking for money which seemed like it wasnt the brightest idea because they arent winning so they probably should not be asking for money at this point. the Democratics are focusing on whats important today. THey are taking everything one day at a time which i believe is the way to go as of right now. The republicans are looking too much into the future, but I dont think that is what we need right now. What we need right now is to look at the issues of today which is what the democratic website is doing.
ReplyDeleteI think the reason the Republicans ask for money is because they can! Republicans tend to be upper class wealthier individuals, which causes them to vote on the Republican side. I dont think asking for money is a big piece of either website, of course its going be one of the first things we notice as poor college students, but many able adults are willing to donate to their political party. I agree that we need to focus on now, but with the economy in the state that its in, we do need to seek long run solutions. To be honest I think our country is just too polarized. Not one political party is best, we need to combine ideals and get things done, opposed to fighting over things.
DeleteThe first thing I noticed when going to the republican page is the big Donate box at the bottom, to me, it is as this is one of the main goals of the Republican Party. I agree with my classmates that the website itself is not very appealing. It doesn't show enough information and it is almost as if everything was all over the place. It is ironic how even this party has a picture of Obama because in a way it weakens their argument.
ReplyDeleteThe democratic page seems a lot more organized. The bright blue colors in the background really caught my attention. It seems as if they update their page almost daily. The website is also a lot more visually attractive, including the videos. It is easier to navigate. Like someone mentioned, it almost looks like a tumblr page which I think is important when addressing a specific type of audience, As seen in the previous post, most of Obama’s supporters were young people, which means they are more likely to follow up with todays technology.
The interest group websites were messy and not as visually appealing.
In order to for a website to be successful it must be easy to navigate, visually attractive, and reliable.
I definitely agree with everyone in saying that the Democrat page is more appealing than the Republican page. It is more user friendly and easy to follow. Technology has been on the rise and the Democrat page knows that which is seen by their Tumblr-like layout. Ben also brought up a good point about how recently both sites have posted on their blogs...the GOP rarely does, whereas the Democratic site posted today. When I first went on the GOP, I also saw that it was more focused on Obama being in office rather than what their main issues and beliefs are.
ReplyDeleteThe interest group websites were much less organized than the main political party sites. This makes sense to me since we usually focus all of our attention on either the Republican or Democratic parties. Aside from the Democrat website, the rest need to revamp their sites in order to have a more appealing page and to catch the attention of people who come across their site.
Looking over the two parties homepages, I automatically saw a difference. I decided to first look at the Democrats homepage and instantly I felt happier, weird to say! Maybe it was the blue. It’s very user friendly, easy to navigate, not crowed. This is a big plus for American citizens who don’t really know how to use a computer. The tabs were also very organized. First look at the Republican homepage, I thought was organized and modern. I thought it was going to be a blast from the past but it wasn’t. Looking more into the website I found it to be unclear in comparison to the Democrats homepage where like I said, is more user friendly. The Republicans still are targeting the older upper-middle class population and you can tell that The Democrats are focusing on the generation preparing for the future. I think if the republicans want to gain more supporters I think its best that they look towards all people not just a group of people. Maybe that will help them be more effective. Even though the interest groups are very informative I would not think that they have an effective strategy with advertising their causes. Moveon.org is very bland and not an attractive site, the NRA website in my opinion has too much going on, and AIPAC is something that just doesn’t catch my attention. On the other hand the Sierra club is similar to the democratic website and the Christian Coalition is similar to the Republican website. In general I think the political party websites are more efficient because you can easily have all these topics put into their websites. I just think the political parties are more important and efficient to people, although most of the interest groups are among the largest.
ReplyDeletePosted for Bisma:
ReplyDeleteI believe that the democrats had a more welcoming home page while the republicans seemed to be more demanding. I noticed that the Republicans were asking for money which seemed like it wasnt the brightest idea because they arent winning so they probably should not be asking for money at this point. the Democratics are focusing on whats important today. THey are taking everything one day at a time which i believe is the way to go as of right now. The republicans are looking too much into the future, but I dont think that is what we need right now. What we need right now is to look at the issues of today which is what the democratic website is doing.
While looking at the Democrats homepage, I felt very invited immediately. The use of all the organized tabs made it easy for one to find what topic of interest they were looking for. As Diana Jaimes had said, the page looks like a tumblr page. I think that for the younger audience Obama has attracted this is very easy for people to navigate. The Republican homepage also showed topics of interests, but not as in depth as the Democratic homepage. One thing that I noticed on the Republican homepage was there are many opportunities to get involved. However, one the side they asked for donations, I felt it was a little pushy.
ReplyDeleteThe ultimate goal for America is to make decisions to please American citizens’ wants, and to better our country. All these groups as well as the political parties are trying to put their word out there, so things can be accomplished. I think that the easier it is to navigate the website, and the more appealing to the eye visually can effect the desire to learn more about what the organization has to offer or to say.
The Republican Party page and the Democrat Party approach patriotism from different angles in attempts to draw an audience toward their party. I believe this is significantly affected by the recent election. The Democrat’s page is more celebratory in light of their recent victory, whereas the Republican page poses several platforms, highlighting liberal weaknesses and state affirmative ways to rectify what they view has been a wrongdoing. I will mention, however, that I tend to side with the Republicans I am politically affiliated with the Party. Even though Obama has been reelected, I believe the Democrat’s should attempt to include their political agenda of what they hope to accomplish over the next four years on their homepage just to grant the party’s victory more legitimacy. It’s all well and good to support your leader, just hope that he has plans and not just the ability to obtain votes. With that being said, I see how the Democrats could sway voters though with the structure of their site. The Republicans, both as a party and how the structure their site, tend to be more abrasive since they have a plan in mind attached to a running play by plan of how to accomplish this plan which may seem overwhelming and insensitive of voter opinions. I for one would rather my political leaders have a solid agenda in mind rather than getting the feeling that a party cares about me the individual and wants to celebrate and hold my hand. As for the interest groups, I believe the sites’ structures were too commercial and were ineffective in terms of capturing my attention. They were disorganized, advertisement-ridden and failed to make their voices heard. In simply existing, I believe interest groups draw attention to their topic, however their splashy sites do nothing to improve their cause.
ReplyDeleteThe first difference that I noticed between the Republican’s Website and the Democrat’s website is that the Democrats have a link to there blog and the Republican’s do not. I think this is a small example of the Democrats reaching out to younger voters and how they are using social media much more effectively than the Republicans. I found that both websites were asking for money and had a big donate tab on the right of their contents tabs. Both websites have articles about how their members are doing what is right and how the other party is hurting America. The interest group’s websites are not as well put together as either of the parties’ websites are and they are harder to navigate.
ReplyDeleteI think that political parties are a more effective way to achieve political goals because you have members actually involved in the government and voting. Interest groups are just spending money and lobbying but it is up to the members of the parties to actually make the decisions.
As many people have mentioned, the Democrat's page is setup in a way that this generation is used to. I am a big user of Tumblr, and I have to agree with Maggie and Thomas. Opening the Democrats page reminded me right away of Tumblr. It also made me think that they spent quality time on their webpage, adding tabs and making it easier to access what the viewer is looking for. So I ask myself, if the Republicans really want to win, shouldn't they have a page or something that reaches out to the younger voters? The Democrats look like experts when it comes to this, and that is why they won the 2012 election. Obama won the vote of the minorities, which consists of a lot of young people.
ReplyDeleteWhen looking at the interest groups, I felt like they brought out their information well, but when it comes to their issues, I feel like their strategies are not as effective.
Something that I thought was very interesting and distinctive from the Republican and Democrat website was that in the Democrats’ page under the subheading PEOPLE they had a variety of ethnicities, religions, and sexual orientations. This to me demonstrated that they were concerned about speaking specifically to each person individually. The idea of talking to each person individually can explain the reason why Obama won the Latino vote. Last class we were talking about how individuals can make donations to whichever party they choose and in both websites this was a clear option that was visible in the first page. However, I would say that the Democrat website was more effective. From the Republican website I felt they were very hostile towards the Democrats, for example in the merchandise they were selling. Also the Democratic website just seemed uplifting with positive words everywhere. I think that political parties are a better way of achieving political goals simply because in interest groups focus on an issue and can ignore the others while political parties cover more issues for a broader audience.
ReplyDeleteIn previous comments people have been pointing out that the Republican page has items that are "negative" toward Obama and that they are trying to raise money for their next candidate. This is obviously true, however, I don't really understand how that can be considered a flaw in their website. People should think about what if the shoe was on the other foot and the Republican party had won the election? You don't think the democrats would put something "negative" up about the Republican president? These parties have become so separated that I wouldn't put it past either of them. People are obviously going to find more flaws within the party that they don't associate with due to human bias nature. In regard to the democratic website being more youth friendly, I do agree. Moreover, I don't think the Republicans are exactly going after a younger age group. Thinking back to the polls in the last blog, you saw that the majority of Republicans were older, in that case, I believe there website is effective with the group they are trying to ultimately reach out to. As a republican myself, I will admit that the democratic website has very good qualities to it and might be more effective. Do I think their website is going to be their ultimate downfall? No I do not.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to page appearance, both are very bland. There is nothing extremely eye catching about either. I really do like the layout of the Democratic page though. The drop tab feature, located at the top, was a nice touch. I also liked the changing headline picture and how one of them said “A Victory for the Middle Class.” It made me feel important and as though I, and fellow middle class men and women, are represented in the White House. In regard to the Republican website, I thought it was quiet distasteful that right on the home page they are requesting donations. This exemplifies the Republican Party well though. Their main concern is the almighty dollar and not the people. Also, I like how they show how many have shared the GOP link on their Facebook and Twitter pages. It made me laugh, why does that matter? Does anyone really care how many times someone has social networked you? In my opinion, no.
ReplyDelete-Caitlin Flanagan
A common thing with both sites is that they both ask for donations, but of course money makes the world go round. The best way to participate would be to find the lobby group that fits your ideology, and try to raise enough funds or gain enough attention. Normally lobby groups with the biggest pocket book are the ones that get legislation pushed up to the front and voted on. The AARP seem like a good group if you’re over 50 since it clearly aims at just that demographic. The GOP seems to have an enticing way of getting people with their views involved. The page is running a banner non-stop “Hold him accountable” with a picture of President Obama. The Democrat website is more simple with an easy scroll down you get a sense of knowing what the party is all about.
ReplyDeleteI also noticed that every single website had donations on their home page. I agree that this just emphasizes how much the world and society counts on money. The two sites that I found to be most effective would be the two political parties. They both have banners that show the proposed legislation, and they are calling for supporters. The banners are a good touch to catch someone's attention and entice a person to learn more.
DeleteI believe that political parties can get your point across but only in a general way. If you are for one party or another, your voice on specific issues is not always heard. Interest groups allow people to express themselves in reference to specific issues such as gun control (NRA). Interest groups allow an individual to better specify what their perspective is; they allow people to focus on one aspect if they wish to.
As I browsed the Republican and Democratic sites I noticed how differently they were structured. As the rest of my classmates noticed, some were a bit more organized which made it easier to navigate, more specifically, the democratic site. However this did bring up a curious idea. Could it be we find it easier to navigate a site that appeals to our interests or views? Although I could find my way around the political party sites and the interests sites, I obviously found specific ones that were more geared towards what I value more appealing. This idea also echos what many people think about their choice candidate and how they may even vote. In regards to the interest sites, I also agree that they were a bit disorganized and almost awkward because they stood alone. I feel as though they could have used more representation or more participation from specific political candidates. This may make it more relatable and personal to the audience they are trying to captivate. Personally, I pay more attention to things when I see a familiar face or hear a familiar name.
ReplyDeleteAfter looking at the Republican and Democratic sites, I am able to contrast, what I interpret as their goals to the public. The Democratic site home page was full of daily news stories of Obama and links to videos of him discussing current topics. This site was very informative and I was initially drawn to the banner at the top that reads, “Now is the time to end gun violence”: read the president’s plan. This initial introduction to the site gives me an inclusive feeling and a sense of the websites goal to attract its audience. In contrast, the GOP website’s opening banners read, “Hold Him Accountable” and “Show Your GOP Colors”. This site was additionally very informative, with a nice layout, but it lacked a connection with me, which is a vital component for online websites. No matter what tab you clicked on for the GOP website, there were donation advertisement boxes, which made me feel that this website, although informative, was less concerned about informing and more with making a profit. Therefor, I personally think the Democratic website had a more effective online strategy for gaining supporters. Knowing the Internet is infested with the youth of our society, they are aiming to educate those reading, showing they know their audience. Concerning what I think is the most effective strategy to achieve political goals; I agree with Bisera. Informing people is the main way to make them feel involved and actually get them engaged.
ReplyDeleteWhen I looked at both pages I think they could not be more contradictive. The first thing I saw on the Republican page were news about Obama. But, instead of talking about his election or his accomplishments they are more talking about his failures or what they call "frustration" with his "all about me" approach. It is pretty obvious what their intentions are. Although Obama is already elected, it seems that they are still in a competition instead of being one government that tries to find solutions for America together.
ReplyDeleteAnother fact about the Republican page is that everything is more about supporting them with donations and different ways to vote for them and how to support them in their activities. There is not that much to find about their goals or plans for the future.
On the other hand, when you look at the Democrats page the first thing you can see are the plans and hopes they have for the future(reduce gun control). It is pretty obvious what the party stands for just by looking at the first page. Also the fact that two sections ( People,Issues) have more to do with the people instead of the party itself, shows that they care more about the citizens instead of promoting their party.
After looking at both the Democrats homepage and the Republican homepage, I can say they are both very different from each other. When entering the Democrats homepage you get the immediate feeling of their recent victory over the Republican Party. They mention a few things that the President is doing now in office, but they don’t exactly mention or advertise his agenda for his second term. There is a big link for supporters to donate money to the party. The Democrat page also has an article on their homepage that is bashing and digging at the Republican Party, an example of their recent victory. The Republican Party’s homepage shares a few new things on their agenda that they are working on and want to share it with their supporters. The site shows they are trying to come back stronger, and trying to keep the faith in their supporters. They have a few spots on heir homepage referring to Obama and his policies and what he has been doing during his presidency, but on the homepage they are advertised much smaller than the article on the Democrat page about the GOP. The Republican page also has a spot for donations from their supporters. As for the interest groups, I feel like their websites didn’t do much for me, they were all too busy and grab my attention. I do not believe their sites help them draw in supporters.
ReplyDelete