Livewire: Voters Surfing Web Ahead of Election Day (Matt Drudge is pioneer of political Weblog)

Livewire: Voters Surfing Web Ahead of Election Day Sat Nov 2, 7:31 AM ET By Gary Crosse

NEW YORK (Reuters) - As Election Day approaches, with control of both houses of the U.S. Congress and a majority of state governors' mansions hanging in the balance, many voters are turning to the Internet to help them make an informed choice on Nov. 5.

With so much at stake, Republicans and Democrats have been jockeying for months now on a variety of issues ranging from national security to Iraq to the economy. While most polls suggest that next week's mid-term election could see any of a number of close races determining the balance of power in Congress, busy voters must often look to the media to sort out these thorny issues and learn about candidates.

On average one of every two people in North America and Europe use the Internet compared to far fewer users in the developing world according to United Nations (news - web sites) statistics. Experts say that such a "digital divide" also exists within the United States between younger and older generations as well as between the social classes.

"The digital divide has created a political divide meaning that Web users are more informed than ever in history with the wealth of information out there," said Dr. Bruce Cain, professor of political science at the University of California, Berkeley. "Then you have a less connected group of people who are basically getting no information or only getting their information from the local television news."

"You almost have two nations -- a nation of the politically engaged and a nation of people that are only peripherally involved or interested in politics," he added. "The TV is still an easier way to get your information and as a consequence, the more marginal voter is going to depend on the TV."

But major media outlets have slowly learned that the Web is not to be feared, but can be co-opted. As technology has improved and proliferated, television and radio outlets have come around to using Web sites to supplement their respective broadcasts. Audio and video news clips are now a regular staple of Internet browsing.

Since the advent of the Internet, when it was feared that the Web page might replace the printed page, many newspapers have even seen their circulation figures increase.

While radio and television are still very pervasive media, voters who use the Internet have the advantage of a vast, interactive library of information at their fingertips.

Nowadays, any candidate for national office without a Web site would be seen as a technophobe or a Luddite. Via the Internet, voters can assess a candidate or incumbent's views on key issues as well as their voting records.

With every branch of the federal government accessible on the net, FirstGov (http://www.firstgov.gov) is an excellent place to start, with links to agencies as well as all 50 state government sites.

Each member of Congress also has their own Web site accessible through the main sites of the Senate (http://www.senate.gov) or the House of Representatives (http://www.house.gov). E-mails to members of Congress now far outnumber the amount of letters sent by constituents via regular mail.

Local governments have been slower to come around to the technology, often due to budget constraints or lack of know-how. But it is still possible to find voting hours, instructions and election results on state government sites.

As for when voting in a U.S. election via the Internet might become a reality, it is difficult to say. With security concerns and divergent views on election reform in the aftermath of the 2000 presidential election scandal in Florida, Americans might just have to settle for improved technology at the voting booth instead.

In the area of public policy, the Internet gives nonprofit and public interest groups an open forum to express their views. Anti-abortion groups do battle with pro-choice groups online as do gun rights advocates and supporters of gun control. Simple searches on Internet portals (news - web sites) will yield an array of sites dedicated to such causes.

The Enron accounting scandal has also given rise to several sites dedicated to corporate responsibility, including The Daily Enron (http://www.thedailyenron.com) and Corporate Traitors (http://www.corporatetraitors.com).

Even powerful lobbyists and political action committees who have long been reputed to prefer back-room dealings to the public nature of the World Wide Web are getting into the act.

The Web also offers a much wider spectrum of political opinion than is available on advertising-driven radio or television. From Ralph Nader (news - web sites) to Pat Buchanan (news - web sites), conservatives and liberals, moderates and radicals all battle for hearts and minds on the Web.

The Drudge Report (http://www.drudgereport.com) cut its teeth during the Clinton impeachment scandal as a news junkie standby that garnered millions of hits a day. The site also serves as a bully pulpit for media badboy and founder Matt Drudge, who has been assailed by some media traditionalists as a gossipy non-journalist.

Nonetheless, Drudge was a pioneer of the political Weblog, of which there are several alternatives on the left and the right.

Buzzflash (http://www.buzzflash.com/) offers a different but equally sensational perspective on the American political landscape. Even if you don't agree with their slant, such sites are useful if only to link to news wires, columnists and editorial content from newspapers worldwide that one might not have otherwise have come across surfing randomly.

UC Berkeley's Cain prefers more neutral content to the Weblogs. "Like talk radio and cable TV, certain Web sites find a niche of people who want to hear things that they already believe. That just reinforces the prejudices of certain people," he said.

A detailed and balanced daily Weblog is produced ABC News as The Note (http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/politics), which analyzes the latest polls, political happenings and their treatment by the media.

For those wondering which way an election race is leaning there are also pollsters available on the Web, such as John Zogby (http://www.zogby.com) and IPSOS-Reid (http://www.ipsos-reid.com).

One of the more nontraditional forecasters online is Jerome Armstrong, the braintrust behind MyDD.com (http://www.mydd.com). After working as an options and futures trader, MyDD founder Jerome Armstrong said political forecasting was a natural extension of his interest.

Unlike the major network pollsters, he likes having his own Weblog for its flexibility and independence.

"With the Weblogs you can change your mind (often) looking at all the information out there ... You can make a quick summary of what that race looks like from the perspective of locals," he said.

Armstrong does not hide his liberal political bias or the fact he uses astrology to analyze some competitive races, but he strongly contends that the accuracy of his forecasts take priority over his personal views. For the record, he is predicting the Democrats will gain seven seats in the House resulting in a 219-216 majority while slightly increasing their tenuous majority in the Senate.

Anyone willing to put their money where their mouth is can also do so online. Iowa Electronic Markets hosts a real-money futures market where according to their Web site (http://www.biz.uiowa.edu/iem/markets/cong02.html), contracts pay off depending on the outcome of next week's congressional elections.

Of course another alternative would be to just find your polling place on the Web and go down on Election Day and vote.

(The Livewire column appears weekly. Comments or questions on this one can be e-mailed to Gary.Crosse(at)Reuters.com.)

Nonetheless, Drudge was a pioneer of the political Weblog, of which there are several alternatives on the left and the right.

"You almost have two nations -- a nation of the politically engaged and a nation of people that are only peripherally involved or interested in politics,"

Definitely true.

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