The Internets Impact on Citizen Participation

The internet has had a profound impact on citizen participation. I myself provide a perfect example for this. During my community service project for school this year, I found the internet s a huge resource for me, providing information on my subject of homelessness, and providing information on where i could volunteer. I was able to find an amazing amount of information on my topic using the internet, narrowing my search down from world hunger and homelessness down to just the problems linked with the Bay Area. In our modern day society, more and more people are relying on the internet as a main source of information. It is an amazing tool for education; providing information on almost anything imaginable. While the internet does provide a lot of good important information, there is also false and biased information as well. It is important for people to check the sources of the information they are receiving  online to insure that it is reliable. When used correctly, the internet can provide useful information that allows citizens to participate in almost anything imaginable, from political campaigns to community service.

Political Advertising

Campaign commercials play a significant role in todays political elections. It is an opportunity for voters to be introduced to a candidate and their beliefs and policies. In the recent election for Governor of California, candidates Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman battled to gain the popular vote. Political advertisements played a huge role in the election. Out of the two videos posted above, I believe Jerry Brown does a better job of getting his point across by really attacking the opposition. He creatively incorporates Meg Whitman into the commercial, and attacks her campaign using her direct words. His aggressive approach of advertisement got the point across easier for me to understand, and really pointed out flaws in the other candidate. While Meg Whitman's commercial was more informative on plans and policies, I found it almost boring and dull. These campaign commercials play a significant role in elections, and are the deciding factors for many Americans.

Political Commentary on TV

Political commentary on television has transformed from a simple method of gaining information, to a media dominated by newscasts formed off of political opinions. Todays major television news programs are almost all  centered around political parties. While some are more extreme than others, these opinionated facts seem to cloud the truth from the American people. More and more people today are using these biased resources as the basis of many of their political beliefs and decisions. I believe it is essential for voters to receive unbiased information in order to make a proper and fair voting decisions. Although some TV broadcasts can be highly opinionated, there are still newscasters that do a great job getting the point across in a funny and entertaining way. John Stewart is one example of someone who can attract an audience using humor but also delivers an interesting, less biased story.In this video, he does a great job of pointing out the major flaws of other biased newscasters such as Glenn Beck.