20 Questions
What percentage of Americans reported learning about the election on the web?
65%
In the 2000 primary season, what percentage of Americans named the internet as their primary source for campaign news?
6%
What was the percentage of Americans who got at least some of their campaign news through the internet in the year 2000?
20%
What percentage of Trump's retweets were from members of the public?
78%
How many videos did Clinton post on Facebook and Twitter daily during the time period studied?
Five
What percentage of Trump's tweets included regularly updated videos on social media?
2%
In 2012, what percentage of Obama's tweets retweeted members of the general public?
3%
How many distinct sections addressing specific voting groups or segments of the population were featured on the three candidates' websites in 2016?
None
In 2008, how many dedicated pages did both candidates offer for different constituency groups on their campaign websites?
Around 20
In the 2004 presidential election, what was a characteristic of news websites' interactivity?
Limited opportunities for public engagement
What marked the 2008 election season in terms of presidential candidates' use of digital tools?
Active use of digital tools to communicate directly with the public
What differentiated some news websites in the 2004 election from others?
Offering multiple interactive elements, including online games and candidate matchmakers
In the 2012 US Presidential Elections, how did Obama's and Romney's social media activity compare?
Obama was active on nine social platforms, while Romney was active on five.
What distinguished Hillary Clinton's campaign website approach from Trump's in 2016?
Clinton offered original content produced in-house, while Trump heavily drew on news articles and posts from outside news media.
What was a notable difference in the outreach approach of Clinton and Trump on social media in 2016?
78% of Trump’s links in Facebook posts sent readers to news media stories, while 80% of Clinton’s directed followers to campaign pages.
In 2016, Trump retweeted more material from members of the public than Clinton and Sanders combined.
True
In 2008 and 2012, campaign websites had specific sections addressing different voting groups or segments of the population.
True
In 2016, Clinton posted more videos on Facebook and Twitter daily than Trump.
True
In 2016, none of the three candidates' websites featured distinct sections addressing specific voting groups or segments of the population.
True
In 2016, Trump was the most likely to include regularly updated videos on social media.
False
Study Notes
Evolution of Digital Campaign Communication in US Presidential Elections
- In 2012, 17 out of 19 candidates featured video components on their front pages, indicating a shift towards audiovisual content in campaign communication.
- In 2012, Barack Obama's campaign activity far outpaced Mitt Romney's, with Obama being active on nine social platforms compared to Romney's five.
- Obama's campaign allowed users to customize their digital interactions by offering 18 different constituency groups, while Romney's campaign put more emphasis on Facebook and blogs.
- Obama's campaign posted nearly four times as much content as the Romney campaign, and about half of each candidate's posts included a request for some kind of voter follow-up activity.
- Both Obama and Romney used social media and their websites to discuss campaign issues, with half of Obama’s digital posts and 40% of Romney’s focusing on domestic issues, and the economy being the most prominent subject for both.
- In 2016, social media became central to candidates' outreach, changing the role and nature of the campaign website.
- Hillary Clinton's campaign bypassed the news media, offering original content produced in-house on the website, while Trump heavily drew on news articles and posts from outside news media on his website.
- On social media, 78% of Trump’s links in Facebook posts sent readers to news media stories, while 80% of Clinton’s directed followers to campaign pages.
- Unlike previous cycles, none of the sites in 2016 offered the user the option to create a personal fundraising page, nor did their news verticals have comment sections.
- In 2016, Bernie Sanders stood out for highlighting posts by members of the public on social media.
- Both in 2012 and 2016, the campaigns rarely engaged directly with the public, with only a small percentage of their digital posts being retweets from the public.
- In 2016, unlike Sanders, Clinton and Trump limited outreach to donation requests and email and volunteer sign-ups, without offering supporters the ability to make calls on their behalf or the option to create a personal fundraising page.
Test your knowledge of the evolution of digital campaign communication in US presidential elections with this quiz. Explore how candidates utilized social media, websites, and digital content to engage with voters, and compare the strategies and approaches of different campaigns in 2012 and 2016.
Make Your Own Quizzes and Flashcards
Convert your notes into interactive study material.
Get started for free
