Web Sites See Convention Bonanza
A new medium may carry their message, but the main concern of the dozens of Web sites set to converge upon this summer’s national political conventions will be business.
Only a faint glimmer four years ago, the Internet will have a glaring presence at the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia beginning Monday and at the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles in mid-August. Approximately 1,000 writers and support staff from about 100 Web sites will offer online users a host of dazzling and dizzying features, including instant polls, streaming video, live audio feeds, 360-degree cameras and, of course, chat rooms.
Two Internet companies without connections to major news networks--America Online and Pseudo Programs Inc.--even garnered prestigious sky-box locations at the conventions. Other privately held sites boast top-tier journalists from newspapers and television. For example, Voter.com’s executive editor is Carl Bernstein, the former Washington Post reporter who broke the Watergate scandal story.
“The competition for attention among dot.coms is going to be very intense,” said Martin Kaplan, associate dean of USC’s Annenberg School for Communication. “Every new content opportunity is going to be a chance for them to get a higher profile.”
A higher profile is crucial to transforming political Web sites from money-losers into moneymakers, industry analysts say. At stake is a slice of the lucrative political advocacy market, estimated to exceed $30 billion annually.
For many political Web sites, the conventions represent the first major test of their capabilities. Not only will they be trying to attract a loyal audience, but they will also be trying to impress a host of venture capital investors who have pumped tens of millions of dollars into their enterprises over the last two years.
But political Web sites are downplaying any “make-or-break” aspect of the conventions and are choosing instead to emphasize the potential business bonanza.
“Here are two events in the period of two weeks that allow us to really target every possible potential customer we could ever want,” said Kyle McSlarrow, vice president of political affairs for grassroots.com. “I plan to walk away with a lengthy list of people who want to talk further about our tools.”
Aiding the dot.com cause is the continuing retreat of network television from the conventions--a trend that began in 1980, largely because of poor ratings. Companies are hoping the public will trade their remotes for their mouses in order to enjoy a level of participation unknown to passive television viewers. With a point and a click, citizens will be able to immediately communicate with candidates, delegates and other voters.
“Just as television shook up the political establishment in 1948 with the first broadcast from inside a convention hall, the Internet is now poised to revolutionize the very idea of political coverage,” declares Pseudo.com’s Web site (Tribune Ventures, part of Tribune Co., which owns the Los Angeles Times, is an investor in the privately held company).
Headlining Psuedo.com’s preconvention stories are ones about George W. Bush’s “heartthrob” nephew, an interview with Al Gore’s daughter Karenna and the campaign “dope” on First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. The site, sandwiched between ads for concerts and CDs, also contains links to political news from traditional media sources.
Pseudo.com is clearly targeting a younger audience. Other Web sites are going after their own niche. Take grassroots.com, which is touting its “unconventional” coverage as well. (But, it’s apparently a different kind of unconventional than Pseudo.com’s.)
The 11-month-old Web site, supported by $33.4 million in venture capital and which has former White House Press Secretary Mike McCurry as a board member, is hoping to attract activist-minded citizens. As their name suggests, the Web site will pay special attention to the shadow conventions and other events of interest to grass-roots political organizers.
“People making speeches is only about 10% of what goes on,” said McSlarrow of the San Bruno, Calif.-based grassroots.com, which is sending about 10 of its 40 employees to both conventions. “The rest is a mix of part-carnival and part-networking that frankly never gets reported.”
But not all Web sites are plugging into every aspect of the convention. Politics.com is sending only one freelancer to report primarily on convention night life. The site will also have a few congressional candidates post daily dairy entries from Philadelphia and Los Angeles.
“This . . . is really going to be a showcase for technology,” said Kurt Ehrenberg, managing editor of politics.com, whose target audience is political junkies. “There really isn’t enough going on there to justify what some people are spending.”
Others agree. Conventions are notoriously dull and free of spontaneity. Apart from the curious Web surfer, observers are hard-pressed to predict a wave of political awakening as a result of Internet coverage.
“Having a 360-degree rotating camera is fascinating, although I’m not sure it’s the kind of information citizens need to help them make complicated decisions,” said Kaplan. “Much as I would like to say the Internet will create a new universe of engaged citizens, on that I can only say the jury is still out.”
