Category Archives: Miscellaneous
The FEC and Social Media – Trend Analysis from I2M Faculty Member Brett Kappel
We’ve had some community members ask about trends and/or guidelines for using Twitter and other social media tools to communicate about your PAC. According to I2M faculty member Brett Kappel, “The Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United should have an impact on your ability to communicate with your members via Twitter soon. The FEC is revisiting its rules regarding communications by corporations regarding candidates in light of Citizens United, but they haven’t started that rulemaking yet. In my opinion, after Citizens United, the FEC’s distinction regarding communications regarding candidates to members of the PAC’s restricted class or outside the restricted class can no longer justified. I expect that in the next election cycle those regs will be…
The Target Political Contribution Backlash – Getting Back to Basics
You’ve probably read the Wall Street Journal account and other news reports about the backlash to Target from their recent political contributions to Minnesota Forward.
My gut reaction was that there was probably a very simple reason why this happened, why the backlash was so severe, and it had to do with how Target did (or did not) communicate the importance of political engagement and the nexus between politician’s votes and Target’s bottom line. I was discussing the situation with a client a few weeks ago and her gut reaction was like mine: “Isn’t this about getting back to basics? Target needs to get back to basics.”
A Politico article stated that many of Target’s employees “expressed outrage at the…
Yahoo: “Despite Enormous Popularity, Old Spice Guy Not Helping Sales”
The Old Spice ads make me laugh. They generate buzz. But it’s always about the results! Good to remember for your next PAC or grassroots campaign. Who is your target audience? Are you speaking their language?
How Do the Top Interest Groups Use Social Media for Government Relations?
Here’s a new study on social media use by top lobbying groups.
The study found that the vast majority of leading U.S. political advocacy groups are using at least one social media platform to connect and organize stakeholders.
Amy in the News
I made some predictions in a February 2009 Politico article http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0209/18915.html
on the sustainability of the Organizing for America movement. That led to an interview with In These Times magazine about my additional thoughts on the enthusiasm gap among Democratic voters in the 2010 election.
Bottom line? The new (first time voters) 2008 Obama voters want immediate gratification, and that’s not reality: http://inthesetimes.com/article/6535/minding_the_enthusiasm_gap
And now, the college students are admitting it: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1010/44093.html