Peep Insights: Yes We Can - Politics Meets Pop Culture?

I can’t say I was surprised when CNN reported that visits to Barack Obama’s website had increased drastically, by 90% in the last month, and that the rise was due primarily to first-time visitors. Many are already touting Obama as the candidate of today’s youth and comparisons to JFK abound. Of course, youth’s reliance on the digital domain for news, political and beyond, is well known.

A recent SS+K/AdAge Study of Political Marketing reports that digital divides generations. 52% of voters under thirty visited a candidate’s homepage, versus just 28% of older voters. Similarly, while 43% of younger voters visited a candidate’s blog, only 23% of older voters did.

While these disproportionate averages are not unexpected, the rise of user generated content to show support for a candidate is something I’m less familiar with. Sure, the “Obama Girl” video was much circulated, but it was sheer self-promotion, the New York Times reported that she didn’t even vote. Somehow, the “Yes We Can” video seems different. The video had 1.2 million views before Super Tuesday, within 48 hours of going live, so predictions for this week don’t require a pundit.

“Yes We Can” takes its inspiration from the speech Obama made after his victory in New Hampshire. Produced by will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas and directed by Bob Dylan’s son, Jesse, it features multiple aspirational entertainers, including John Legend, Kareem Abdul Jabbar. jazz artist Herbie Hancock, actress Scarlett Johansson, and cameos by model Amber Valetta and actress Kate Walsh, among others.While “Yes We Can” doesn’t spread Obama’s views and is “non-political” in nature, it’s emotional tone strikes a chord.

While much has been written about Obama’s oratory style, it is difficult to argue that lyrical is not an appropriate descriptor. The same can not be said about much of the footage on YouBama, set up by two recent Stanford graduates, though its content is authentic. YouBama was created as a place where anyone can upload their own supporter generated content. Though neither of these efforts are supported by the Obama campaign, it will be interesting to track the impact of user generated content this election season.

Could this type of involvement make casting a vote less a political gesture and more of a socio-cultural statement? And will it translate into actual youth votes? Time will tell.

Check it out at: http://www.dipdive.com/

SS+K/AdAge Study of Political Marketing Methodology: 1,997 registered voters in NH were polled by phone immediately before and then once again immediately after the primary on January 8, 2008. Respondents were asked to report on the degree and nature of their involvement in the political process leading up to the election and then if and how they eventually voted. The study has a 95% confidence rate and a 3% margin of error. Field work was conducted by Study Logic of Cedarhurst, New York.

Maria Vrachnos is founding partner of Peep