Technology, popular culture and everyday life: the electoral defeat of New Zealand Internet MANA
Technology, popular culture and everyday life: the electoral defeat of New Zealand Internet MANA
The development of the Internet and social platforms was expected to have a profound influence on citizens’ ability to influence politics, transforming traditional methods of political communication. This article examines the digital campaign strategy of the Internet MANA alliance during the 2014 New Zealand General Election. Internet MANA adopted digital strategies that had proven successful overseas and had the potential to radically transform New Zealand politics. The campaign, however, culminated in a disastrous electoral defeat. The article argues that online media strategies alone cannot explain election outcomes. Instead, we need to explore the ways in which digital campaign strategies interact with the electoral system, mainstream media and political ‘brands’. Going beyond the specifics of New Zealand politics, this article raises questions about the role of technology on political communication practices.
Political Communication, Digital Politics, Democracy and Technology, Cultural Politics, New Zealand Politics
67-80
Cardo, Valentina
87fafbf1-f6c0-4454-a39a-9173d7bd7f5e
11 February 2018
Cardo, Valentina
87fafbf1-f6c0-4454-a39a-9173d7bd7f5e
Cardo, Valentina
(2018)
Technology, popular culture and everyday life: the electoral defeat of New Zealand Internet MANA.
Information Polity, 23 (1), .
(doi:10.3233/IP-170038).
Abstract
The development of the Internet and social platforms was expected to have a profound influence on citizens’ ability to influence politics, transforming traditional methods of political communication. This article examines the digital campaign strategy of the Internet MANA alliance during the 2014 New Zealand General Election. Internet MANA adopted digital strategies that had proven successful overseas and had the potential to radically transform New Zealand politics. The campaign, however, culminated in a disastrous electoral defeat. The article argues that online media strategies alone cannot explain election outcomes. Instead, we need to explore the ways in which digital campaign strategies interact with the electoral system, mainstream media and political ‘brands’. Going beyond the specifics of New Zealand politics, this article raises questions about the role of technology on political communication practices.
Text
2017 DrVCardo Manuscript 17 38
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 20 December 2017
e-pub ahead of print date: 8 January 2018
Published date: 11 February 2018
Keywords:
Political Communication, Digital Politics, Democracy and Technology, Cultural Politics, New Zealand Politics
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 418155
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/418155
ISSN: 1570-1255
PURE UUID: aee744b7-382d-4668-8fbc-f07ee34c56d4
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Date deposited: 22 Feb 2018 17:31
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 04:24
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