Background

Online and digital media are changing the face of the world. But how is the universal availability of information impacting electoral politics? Media persons and experts from across the world ponder on this issue, at the conclave on ‘Digital Media: Harnessing the Power of New Media’.

Barack Obama’s presidential victory in the US has made the world sit up and take notice of the impact of new media tools in reaching out to the electorate. His YouTube presence charmed the young voters, as it signaled his accessibility and an image of being ‘hip’.

Different strokes

But that was in the US. Worldover, as the digital wave envelops cities and villages and as continents come closer, bringing even the two-dollars-a-day populace within the ambit of information availability, strangely, polity at the top is impacted in varying degrees by this revolution. It’s not yet a safe bet to say that the digital revolution has impacted electoral politics in every country.

While the largest democracy in the world, India, basking in the glory of its IT success, is reluctant to embrace the benefits of Online media in electoral sphere, troubled countries like Bangladesh, Pakistan and Kenya have demonstrated remarkable agility and innovation in spreading the word of democracy through the Internet and mobile phones.

Again, if in the Western world, a leader, by being a regular user of Online media tools, endears himself to the electorate, leaders in the developing world might actually alienate the masses by portraying an image of an aloof politician, preaching from his secure pedestal.

Online discourse

Perplexing aspects like these would be food for thought at the conclave organised by the International Institute for Journalism (IIJ) of InWEnt, Berlin, in association with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, in Berlin on March 19. Online mediapersons and media experts like Prof Harry Dugmore and Nancy Scola will analyse the worldwide trend in the past few years and attempt to forecast how the Online media presence will increase in the political space.

The theme could not have been more relevant for observers of politics and media alike. Because, to begin with, a number of countries will be holding elections this year, among them Germany, India and Indonesia. Two, following the role of Online media in the US elections, it will be pertinent to watch where this medium stands with respect to its political reach in other countries. And three, the discussions will provide pointers to mediapersons, how to understand the electoral pitch of a politician on the one hand, and the mood of the voter on the other. Even for a journalist functioning in traditional media, the new-age media tools are critical today, and the seminar will highlight how journalists can ignore these tools at the cost of their career.

Behind these bytes

As preparatory work for the conference, a team of 15 journalists from Africa and Asia, currently pursuing an Online and Multimedia course at the IIJ, has prepared this website. They have presented case studies of their respective countries, to bring to you the reality of Online media reach in their regions. There are also reports on the power of various Online and digital media tools such as mobile phones, Facebook and YouTube.

The website also features interviews of keynote speakers Harry Dugmore, MTN Chair of Media and Mobile Communication at the Rhodes University School of Journalism and Media Studies, and Nancy Scola, Associate Editor, TechPresident.

The conference focusses on the role of Online media in elections, but we believe that the Online and digital media being all-encompassing, what is said at the conference, could be used by mediapersons in redefining their approach to journalism and media as such.