Back in August, I posted a ridiculous and wonderfully Stubstyle idea about a way to shake up the presidential candidate debates that we've all come to know and love. Feel free to check out the post if you're interested, but the long and short was that a layer of audience participation (real participation mind you) and a degree of candidate accountability would go a long way towards improving the process. Well it turns out that MTV and MySpace not only read my blog, but they decided to take my idea and run with it. At least thats what I'm going to tell myself =)
MTV and MySpace (M&M) doing politics? Oh this should be rich. I'm willing to bet at least 20% of you just started thinking about a new Real World season with Dennis Kucinich or Spring Break Dance party with Rudy Guiliani. Ok fine... it was just me.
But in all seriousness (DISCLAIMER: Im never actually serious), MTV and MySpace have put together an interesting format for political discussion - one that in my opinion is leaps and bounds ahead of the status quo. The idea is simple. A presidential candidate shows up on a college campus and is asked questions by a student audience. Questions can also be asked from afar by using M&M's websites, IMs, and cell phones and it obviously goes without saying that there are moderators to filter student and internet questions. Though I should probably mention that if you are over the age of 13, the two MTV-VJish moderators will probably irritate you... a lot. Anyway...
But here is where the real giddyup comes in.
As a candidate responds to questions, you have the opportunity to vote on how good a response you think they've given - 3 variations of "good" and 3 variations of "bad" that encompass feelings like "dodged response" or "understands reality" to name a few. At the end of the response, MTV then cuts over to Washington Post staffer Chris Cillizza, who reviews the publics feelings on the response, and if need be, allows for clarification and further discussion. Public opinion is also tracked, in more general terms, throughout the course of the event. As is typically the case, my blathering is never as good as seeing an example of the real deal, so here is a little 2 minute clip from the first and only such dialogue (with John Edwards) to help you make sense of the process.
To my knowledge, not every candidate has agreed to participate in the MTV-MySpace discussion, but several candidates from both parties are expected to jam before things get real in '08.
This isnt a post about party politics, so that stays at the door. And obviously this format, like any, is not without its flaws. But having watched the Edwards event, I highly recommend trying to find some time to check out one of the future dialogues in the MTV/Space format even if politics isnt you bag.
The opportunity to witness technologies like MySpace, cell phones, and instant messenger programs working together to impact the student political experience was really amazing. And as a side, its the first time I've watched a political event and not felt agitated afterwards. The entire feel of the event was unlike any political discussion I have ever witnessed. And I mean that in a good way.
On a broader level, this is a great example of how the connectivity of todays young people has the potential to shape our society. During the 2000 elections, MySpace didnt even exist. In 2004, it was in its infancy. Today there are over 200 million accounts and candidates for President of the United States of America are taking it seriously enough to use it as a forum to speak to young people. And if students are demanding this sort of interaction with presidential candidates, whose to say they won't expect the same from the educational institutions?
The dialogues are streamed over MySpace's '08 election page as well as MTV.com and seem to be repeated during the evening on MTV's television network. The next event will be Monday, October 29th at 1:30pm (eastern) from Coe College in Iowa, with Barack Obama. Check it out... for the kids.
Video from Youtube.com
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