MySpace.com, the social networking Web community frequented by the young and hip, has lured a few members outside of its usual demographic of late: Politicians.
Gubernatorial candidates Martin O?Malley, a Democrat, and Republican Gov. Robert Ehrlich have sites. So does Republican U.S. Senate candidate Michael Steele and attorney general candidate Scott Rolle, also a member of the GOP. A 23-year-old named Scott from Bethesda took www.myspace.com/bencardin ? so it looks as if Steele?s Democratic opponent didn?t even have the savvy or interest to save himself a space on the network.
In attempt to look with it, all come off as looking silly at best and without it at worst, however. Nothing posted gives the viewer a greater sense of who the candidates are as individuals. Instead, they belch out public relations-approved campaign bromides in a different medium, one with great opportunity for interaction and, in these cases, with that opportunity unexploited.
Rolle is the only one with multiple blog posts ? and half of them are news releases. Didn?t anyone tell him that blogs are for unscripted messages? And for the most part Rolle uses his site to tell parents (people who don?t visit the site) why they should not let their children visit MySpace and link them to articles about how to monitor their child?s online behavior. O?Malley?s most frequent poster to the site is a guy who uses as his screen photo a naked and pregnant Britney Spears on the cover of Bazaar, a women?s fashion magazine. Maybe someone forgot to take him down?
Steele?s site is filled with his official photos of himself from different angles and the only message on his blog comes from one Gary M. Collins, of the Students for Steele Coalition thanking people for visiting the site. Ehrlich?s site at least uses photomontages to show the governor in a variety of locations and moods. But he repeats the same messages found on his campaign Web site.
The content makes one wonder if the candidates have even visited the sites or just had staffers create them ? the latter, one would guess. Opportunity missed.
Marshall McLuhan, considered by many to be the chief philosopher of the electronic age, said the medium is the message. If that is the case, they are cool simply by creating a site.
But we assume they do not want to be cool for coolness? sake, but to win votes from those 18 and older using the portal. If that is the case, they must employ content and post media appropriate for the voters they?re trying to win over.
Blogs ? or Web logs ? have taken off in large part because of a national craving for authentic voices. Such placesas MySpace and similar portals allow users to broadcast their authenticity by posting photos and commentary and video of themselves ? often racy ones. (Rupert Murdoch?s News Corp. bought MySpace last year, which speaks to its commercial ability to reach the younger demographic.)
Our Maryland politicians are using the sites not to provide insight into their true selves, but to repeat tired and trite campaign slogans. If they want to motivate younger voters to the polls, they must use their pages to speak frankly about their ideas and goals. In fact, that would be a great concept for their entire campaign.
Maybe then some of the 107,000 people who have dropped off the voter rolls in Baltimore City and County, Anne Arundel, Carroll, Harford and Howard counties since 2002 will find a reason to return to the polls and participate in self-government.
Candidate sites
www.myspace.com/martinomalley
www.myspace.com/bobehrlich
www.myspace.com/steeleformaryland
www.myspace.com/scottrolle
