Abstract
Drawing on interview data, participant observation, and archival research of the progressive group MoveOn.org and the conservative Tea Party Movement groups in Tallahassee, FL, this research examines how social movements use Internet Communication Technology (ICT) to affect political parties and political change in the United States. The paper consists of two analytical sections. In the first section, we examine how these groups use ICT to effectively market issues, mobilize consensus, and get citizens involved in the political process. In the second section, we outline how activist groups' use of ICT changes the relationship between social movement groups and political parties. While we do not suggest that ICT equalizes the relationship between social movements and political parties, we do show that savvy movement groups can use ICT in ways that can help activists transform a party. Additionally, we illustrate the potential for synergy between social movement and political parties in the digital age. We conclude the chapter with a discussion of how scholars might further assess the changing relationship between social movements and political parties.
By the time Election Day arrives, millions of Americans will have contributed to a presidential candidate this year. Hundreds of political organizations—from the Sierra Club to the NRA, from MoveOn.org to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth—will have taken an active part in the campaign, supported by Americans from every part of the political spectrum. All of this is democracy in action, and it is so commonplace that we take it for granted. Yet, this kind of mass citizen involvement in the political process is a relatively recent phenomenon, spanning less than a half-century of our nation’s history. How did it happen? And what does it suggest for this election, and for presidential elections to come? The answers can be found in the rise of what we conservatives call the “alternative” media—beginning with the conservative movement’s development of political direct mail in the 1960s, followed by the growth of talk radio and cable TV news in the 1990s and, since then, by the remarkable role of the Internet in the political process. In this year’s presidential election, it is the alternative media that are largely framing the issues, engaging the public, raising money, and getting out the vote. Whatever the outcome on Nov. 2, this election will be remembered as the year when these alternative media all came together to change how politics in America is practiced.
From an article published in The Washington Post by Richard A. Viguerie and David Franke. Published October 4, 2004
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Notes
- 1.
To be clear, political scientists do not agree that ICT will reinvigorate party politics or even democratize party structures. Some scholars, for instance, argue that ICT makes it easier for political parties to circulate information and engage new and existing members in decision-making processes (Bonchek 1995). Others disagree noting that in the “post-modern” era of campaigning, parties are run by consultants, who shape politicians and platforms to suit the public preference of the day but not to engage party members (Farrell and Webb 2000; Norris 2000).
- 2.
Here again there is not agreement regarding the ability of ICT to mobilize people to social movements. While some movement scholars argue that ICT is changing who and how citizens get involved (Earl and Kimport 2011; Rohlinger and Brown 2009), others note that ICT does little more than make communication among and coordination of activists easier (Diani 2000; Tarrow 1998).
- 3.
The research that does exist examines the strategic voting movement in the 2000 presidential election. In an effort to help Green Party candidate, Ralph Nader, get 5 % of the national popular vote, the benchmark for federal campaign funds, citizens decided to “swap” their votes. Nader supporters pledged their votes to Al Gore in states where the democratic candidate had a chance of beating Bush. In exchange, Gore supporters cast a vote for Nader in noncompetitive states like CA. Although the effort was unsuccessful, this e-movement serves as an important example of how activists can employ ICT to try and shape the political system Earl, Jennifer, and Alan Schussman. 2003. "The New Site of Activism: On-Line Organizations, Movement Entrepreuneurs, and the Changing Locations of Social Movement Decision Making." Research in Social Movements, Conflicts and Change 24:155–187, Foot and Schneider (2002). "Online Action in Campaign 2000: An Exploratory Analysis of the U.S. Political Web Sphere." Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media 46:222–244, Schussman and Earl (2004). "From Barricades to Firewalls? Strategic Voting and Social Movement Leadership in the Internet Age." Sociological Inquiry 74:439–463.
- 4.
MoveOn opponents agree that the group is extraordinarily effective. Republican pollster, Allan Hoffenblum, noted that in addition to organizing liberals, MoveOn is very adept at raising money, applying political pressure, and putting forward a consistent message to the public (Bernhard 2004). More colorful conservative pundits, such as Sean Hannity, argue that the organization is too successful and instead of revitalizing democracy the MoveOn “blog nuts” have taken over the Democratic Party and “control democrats with fear and intimidation” (The complete segment of “Hannity’s America,” which addresses the role of the Internet in progressive politics aired on April 29, 2007 and is available via You Tube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROBDpaxYxT0).
- 5.
MoveOn also has a civic action committee, which addresses issues such as net neutrality and funding for public television and radio.
- 6.
According to the organizational website, MoveOn grew leaps and bounds after September 11, 2001 and the U.S. invasion of Iraq. The group reported an increase in membership from 500,000 in September 2001 to 3 million in December 2005 in the U.S. alone. In January 2013, MoveOn reported it had seven million supporters in the U.S.
- 7.
According to Anthony, the number of members for the Tallahassee Tea Party Facebook page has fluctuated some. At its height, there were nearly 1,500 followers. Since we have been monitoring the page, the number of members has fluctuated between 920 (in April 2010) and 830 (March 2011).
- 8.
By local, we are referring to the immediate Tallahassee area. There are additional groups that have formed in adjacent communities. While we have monitored these groups online, seen their members at events, and conducted interviews with their members, we have not attended their meetings.
- 9.
The posts on public forms and Facebook were copied and pasted in a word document. This information is organized chronologically so that we can see changes over time. Since e-mails are dated and are stand alone texts, they were archived and sorted by thematic topic.
- 10.
We attended all MoveOn events between 2004 and 2006 and have attended all TPM group events and meetings (monthly) since April 2010. In total, we have attended 42 events, rallies, and meetings. All public meetings and events were either tape recorded or video taped so that they could be analyzed at a later date.
- 11.
We had some difficulty getting respondents for MoveOn because many individuals were worried about discussing the organization and their politics in the post-9/11 climate. Since the state is the largest employer in Tallahassee, FL and Jeb Bush was the governor at the time of the first interview, many individuals were concerned that their progressive politics would be “discovered” and they would lose their jobs. For a more detailed discussion see Rohlinger and Brown (2009).
- 12.
Since individuals move, we were not able to locate all of the respondents 2 years after the initial interview. If an individual’s contact information was no longer correct, we conducted local and national searches in an effort to locate the respondent.
- 13.
This is a partial list of the celebrities who have been involved in MoveOn.
- 14.
This is no longer the case. MoveOn simply asks supporters to enter their e-mail address for updates.
- 15.
Interestingly, the success of the TPM has forced MoveOn to take up controversial issues like abortion. By changing the composition of Congress, the TPM ushered in an era of social conservative policy as well, which has included additional restrictions on abortion access through the defunding of Planned Parenthood. MoveOn attacked the proposed legislation and vigorously defended a woman’s right to an abortion.
- 16.
- 17.
Of course, not all social movement organizations using ICT necessarily be in the position to engage a political party. As Earl and Kimport (2011) aptly note, like access to ICT, technological and political skill are not equally distributed across society. As a result, some movements will be better positioned than others to challenge and work with political parties on a more equal footing.
- 18.
The Contract with America is available at www.house.gov/house/Contract/CONTRACT.html. It is worth noting that TPM supporters are very suspicious of these appeals. Almost all of our respondents viewed Republicans as pandering for votes. For example, Joseph, a 61-year-old unemployed electronics technician, noted, “The fact that the Republican Party has tried to more or less commandeer the [TPM] platform tells me that really what they’re doing is damage control…. It’s basically just the same old tactics they’ve used all along. They know that they can’t ignore their really conservative, constitutional base, but they’re trying to water it [the ideas] down as much as possible. And the evidence of that is the fact that some of the new candidates who just went to Washington, they’re already being thwarted and stymied and manipulated and you know just rendered impotent [by the Republican establishment].”
- 19.
Not all of the TPM candidates won. For example, TPM groups cultivated and promoted Steve Stewart, a business man and father of six, for Tallahassee Mayor. TPM groups and a local conservative radio host helped Stewart sell his message to the broader public, which won over many. His opponent, incumbent John Marks, however, challenged Stewart primarily using race-based arguments (Marks is African-American and Stewart is White). Marks noted that Stewart lived on the north side of town (which is sometimes referred to as FFW—Fancy, Fancy Whiteyville) and accused Stewart of “being out of touch” with the average Tallahassee citizen. Stewart tried to counter these attacks by winning an endorsement by a prominent African–American politician in town (County Commissioner Bill Proctor) and speaking before an audience on the south side of town, which is predominantly African–American, to no avail. Stewart lost the election. Despite this loss, Stewart has remained active in local politics and recently revealed an “ethical violation” made by Marks. Currently, Stewart successfully pushed for a formal investigation of the Mayor.
- 20.
While some see this rate as low and, consequently, write off the TPM, we argue that these numbers reflect the variability of the movement’s strength. In Florida, for example, the movement is fairly large and well organized in spite of its decentralization. This undoubtedly contributed to some of the electoral successes.
- 21.
He repeated this move the following year as well, unveiling his budget to Tea Party Movement supporters in South Florida.
- 22.
Posted by reporter Irene Christou on the Phoenix Network. Available at http://phoenixnetwork.us/2011/02/08/.
- 23.
This conclusion is based on our analysis of the Florida TPM. We are not generalizing about the entire movement, nor are we arguing that all of our Republican-minded respondents agree with this interpretation. Respondents working with the Republican Party through TPM committees regard their dealings as mutually beneficial “partnerships.”
- 24.
To my knowledge, the local TPM groups are not funded by national groups such as the Tea Party Patriots or FreedomWorks. However, outside groups occasionally help with mobilization efforts. For example, one of the rallies during the opening week of the legislature was sponsored by Americans for Prosperity, which brought TPM supporters from other parts of the state to the capital. In fact, according to our video documentation of the event, more than 90 % of the attendees were bused from other parts of Florida for the event (the FL representative from the group asked attendees to raise their hand if they had taken the free bus to Tallahassee).
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Rohlinger, D.A., Bunnage, L.A., Klein, J. (2014). Virtual Power Plays: Social Movements, Internet Communication Technology, and Political Parties. In: Grofman, B., Trechsel, A., Franklin, M. (eds) The Internet and Democracy in Global Perspective. Studies in Public Choice, vol 31. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-04352-4_6
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