[LINK] The Internet and the Election - no blackout

[Jan Whitaker]

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Online-campaigning-beats-broadcast-blackout/0,130061791,339283063,00.htm
or
http://tinyurl.com/3x8bj8

Online campaigning beats broadcast blackout
Marcus Browne, ZDNet Australia
18 October 2007 06:12 PM

Political parties are expected to use the 
Internet to blast home their final election 
messages, as the Web is immune to ACMA's pre-election propaganda ban.

Political parties are usually banned from hitting 
the electorate with a final barrage of 
campaigning a few days before an election because 
the Australian Communications and Media Authority 
(ACMA) requires broadcasters to cease television 
and radio advertisements featuring any political content.

But a loophole exists when it comes to 
Internet-based advertising, which means political 
parties will be able to continue broadcast-style 
advertising over the Web until the polls close on 24 November.

In a statement released today, ACMA outlined its 
various responsibilities related to the 
"broadcasting and communication of political and 
election matter", and pointed out that the 
organisation "is not responsible for election or 
political matter appearing on the Internet."

"The blackout period has been in the broadcasting 
legislation a very long time, the principle 
behind it is essentially a policy matter 
 it's 
ACMA's responsibility to implement it," an ACMA 
spokesperson told ZDNet Australia.

This is the first federal election in which the 
issue of online campaigning during the blackout 
period has been a significant concern. At the 
time of the last federal election in 2004, 
YouTube did not exist and the social networking boom was yet to take place.

However, various state elections held over the 
last year have offered a glimpse into what might 
unfold in the run-up to the federal election.

In the Victorian state election late last year, 
the Labor government posted six new ads and 
speeches on its Web site during the first 24 
hours of the "broadcast media" blackout.

"Regulation-wise, the situation is the same now 
as it was three years ago 
 I think what's really 
changed since then is the scale. But if the 
government or parliament are really concerned 
about this then it's up to them to change the 
legislation," the ACMA spokesperson said.

An ALP spokesperson admitted that the party will 
have a "substantial presence online".

"For us it's been about using as much of the 
technology as we could that's accessible to 
people 
 This time round it's certainly about 
more than just having a Web site," the spokesperson said.

The addition of the Google election function on 
Google Australia has also been a significant 
development in online campaigning, particularly 
in relation to broadcast-style material, as each 
of the six parties holding a seat in parliament have their own YouTube channel.



Jan Whitaker
JLWhitaker Associates, Melbourne Victoria
jwhit at janwhitaker.com
business: http://www.janwhitaker.com
personal: http://www.janwhitaker.com/personal/
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