In a display of how overly focused some of us are on certain aspects of social media, there’s now a story out there coming from a LA Times blog: Digg bury brigade: 28 negative McCain stories buried in the past 30 days.
Several had received “more than 700 Diggs” and all had received at least 180 Diggs.
700? 185? Please. Maybe on Digg that’s something, but in the world of politics, 700 votes are probably less than the average precinct. That’s less than two people per Congressional district.
Jed Lewison of The Jed Report thinks it’s organized. It probably is. But so is Open Left’s effort to Googlebomb John McCain. The horrors!!
Such is the nature of politics and it’s intersection with the Internet. This is 2008.
But back to the amount of Diggs. Those numbers are so small in the overall scope of things that I’m beginning to think that there’s about maybe 10,000 insiders or so who will follow stuff like this religiously, forgetting that this presidential election may witness 120,000,000 voters casting their ballots on Election Day.
700? Bah.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Never underestimate the power of a few committed people to change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. Margaret Mead
A few hundred or thousand McCain followers organized to bury dig stories can change the perception of the online voter. In 2008 people turn to the net to get information so burying stories does have an effect. Google’s memory is long and Digg effects Google’s memory.
Chris Kieff
But Chris, with OpenLeft’s efforts, along with the reality that we can all link to negative stories, or blog about them directly, or Tweet bout them, etc., I’m thinking that 185-700 Diggs will be negligible.
Both campaigns should be looking to use tactics like this, if for no reason to counter the other side.
According to this article: http://socialmediaphilosophy.com/philosophy/astroturfing-vs-grassroots/ The McCain campaign has hired people to do this. Which changes the idea considerably.
But I do think that the cumulative effect of these efforts can be considerable. And if one campaign does it better, or pays people to do it better than the other they will have a decided advantage.
It is amusing how well Jed and his George Soros backed lunatics have masted Gobel’s art of deception. Accuse others of what they do.
One only has to look at the Top Stories on Digg to see they are all pro-Obama. So, by virtue of that fact, his insane theory is disproved. Everyday upcoming is full of stories by SheliaNoya, AtHomeBoy, exhorting Obamabots to bomb Amazaon.com reviews for anti-Obama books, or to digg down anything not radical-leftist in outlook.
Outside of one or two really wing-nut, fundie right blogs, there isn’t anything that can touch the “Jed Report” for sheer hate speech against the other side. Not even Drudge or Coulter can match his vile toilet of hate.