Media's Role In The 2000 Election

The 2004 election, in which the incumbent George W. Bush ran against Democrat John Kerry, was a significant in America's record of Presidential elections. In the 2000 election, America saw an increase in the use of television media. In 2004, there was a scramble to implement as many forms of communication and media that the citizens used widely; campaigning began to adopt the internet and manifested itself in the form of political websites, blogs, email, and online communities. Political scientist Winston once described the 2004 election as, "the most accessible in history and changed the political environment." This was the beginning of a dynamic interaction between the people and forms of media, and thus, the media's role truly began to become a tangible bridge between the masses and politics. Because numerous aspects of presidential campaigns have become more symbolic than valuable in content due to a need to raise enthusiasm and optimism in the party platform, the media was granted a larger role in bringing the show and glamour of rhetoric to American homes. For instance, large party conventions are, in essence, extravagant shows …show more content…
Not only could campaign employees and supporters communicate with one another immediately and efficiently, the masses were able to receive political ads through emails and view information on the candidates through web sites and search engines. In addition, the web was often considered to be "free," and not dominated by any large companies; people believed that it was easier to access neutral information because no company dominated the web. In addition, the internet brought a combination of textual information and multimedia such as videos, for quick access. People were then able to research their candidates with more ease and could even participate in discussions with others all over the