biggest reasons is the cost-effective nature of the Internet as well as its ability to connect communities across the country and across the world virtually instantaneously. As Kosterlitz (2003) explains, “The Internet broadens opportunities for ordinary folks to participate in politics in ways that they haven’t for decades. The 60s and 70s were the era of broadcasting, the Nixon-Kennedy debates, and 60-second spots. TV changed political discourse. We’re entering a new political era, the Internet age…It’s an era of engagement and participation,” (3060).
The 1996 presidential election marked the first time that presidential candidates constructed and maintained their own Web sites. In the past, political candidates used television and newspaper advertising to generate support for their candidacies and politicians in office use similar means to win support for their issues or bills from U.S. citizens. Increasingly, the Internet is being used for advertising in a similar manner, but just like television and other media it must prove its worth to politicians and political parties. As Ragusa (2003) notes, “In the 1960s television was considered a new media in political circles, and 15 years ago cable television fought for advertising respect. Today, those companies who are selling online advertising services to political campaigns realize the Internet is no exception,” (35).
In the past, politicians relied on major party offices in major locations to help raise funds for campaigns or to build support for issues and legislation. Such an approach was top-down and centralized in structure. Today, however, the Internet puts fundraising and support for issues in the hands of anyone with a computer and Internet access. The Internet enables individuals to collectively influence campaigns and policy issues with the click of a mouse or the sending of an email. As Weissberg (2003) argues, “The democratization of th...