Its...JustNikc!

Social media and the general election?

I was reading this article from the BBC which was suggesting that election candidates should be on alert about what they say, both publically and in meetings. Okay, so yes, you do need to watch what you say as it could appear on Twitter or as a video on YouTube, but surely it isn’t just about “MPs watching what they say”?

So … Here’s what I think: (it may not be true, it’s just my ideas/opinions!)

1) Social media is growing, as outlined in an earlier blog I did. Parties, such as Conservative, Labour and Lib Dems will all want to jump the band wagon and use the web to ‘promote’ their party. Currently Conservatives are probably one of the most active parties on the web. I mean, look at the US Presidential elections … Obama and Clinton were battling it out on the web, making the votes even more vital.

2) Using “groups” and making new Twitter accounts for particular parties will encourage uses to join or follow. This is more of a marketing ploy, but definately will help parties during the general election.

3) World wide support. Okay, so we Briton’s need to vote, it’s important to us but with the social media, there is a global audience. Using social media by the parties will show the world what they aim to do when in Parliament… making the audience bigger. An example is Twitter and YouTube - It can be viewed from any location on Earth, so Tweets and videos will be seen/watched by people in different countries.

Is ‘news’ slowly being taken over by social updates?

It’s a general question, but my answer: Maybe.

I’m posing this question after reading this article about how some twins found out that their brother died in a car crash through Facebook. Their mother wasn’t even informed by the police but instead by social networking.

I actually get most of my news through Twitter, Facebook and web forums (discussion forums). For example, Twitter’s “Trending List”, which is updated on a regular basis with whats trending on the site, is one way of showing what’s happening around the globe or in once particular country.

One downside of this is that Twitter only allows you to have up to 140 characters. News sites have more detailed articles with more information, though I personally only like the facts (which Twitter is good for at times).

Oh, we can’t forget Facebook with it’s status updates and also sharing links. Again this is a fast travelling “news” service. Though, like Twitter, it isn’t really that good for posting in depth news.

So … is social updates through social networking the next step into the news world? Well, after reviewing the above and also reading some research … I think it could be the way news is relayed in the future.

People should post news as it happens, why relay on corporations to post the news when it’s either delayed or inaccurate.