The Internet Election: Perspectives on the Web in Campaign 2004 (Communication, Media, and Politics)

During the 2004 presidential campaign, 63 million people used the Internet for political information, 43 million discussed politics via e-mail, and 13 million used the Internet to make campaign contributions or arrangements for volunteer efforts. For these reasons and more, this presidential race has been termed the Internet election. The Internet Election analyzes the unprecedented role of the Web in the 2004 presidential campaign. This volume responds to the drastically changing political landscape and, specifically, its effect on the Bush-Kerry race with an eye toward future elections. Leading political communication scholars cover campaign websites, grassroots organizing via the Internet, candidate e-mail strategies, blogs, online discourse about candidates' spouses, and the gendering of (other than presidential) candidates on websites. Political strategists and Internet enthusiasts, as well as political communication scholars and students, will welcome this well-researched and informative book.