US political strategists see rapid changes in Internet age
By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 15:30:00 09/22/2008
Filed Under: Technology (general), Internet, Politics
SAN FRANCISCO, California -- The information age has brought more information to people, particular voters. But today's information age has also brought rapid changes in political debates, said American political strategists Mary Matalin and James Carville.
Matalin and husband Carvile are both high-profile political strategists invited to provide their insights on the ongoing political happenings during the first days of the Oracle Open World here in San Francisco. As Oracle President and Chief Financial Officer Safra Katz described the first day here, it was going to be "All Politics Night."
Amid a backdrop of a recent financial crisis and the upcoming US Presidential elections scheduled in November, both agreed that nobody knows at this time how Americans will vote, as the wind of change has become as rapid as information is disseminated through the Internet.
"We're in a new paradigm age where you can get more information," said Matalin, as she labeled this year's election as an "unchartered territory."
In between sarcastic jokes against the Democrats, Matalin observed that this year's race to the Presidential seat is very unpredictable.
"Nobody expected to be where they are now," she said, referring both to the Democrats and the Republicans.
Matalin observed that topics of political debates today change quickly, citing the example of the recent financial crisis that replaced debates over vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.
Carville, who has been presidential adviser to president Bill Clinton, agrees.
"There's never been a presidential cycle such as this scale," said Carville, as he stressed that history is being made right in front of the world.
"Things are happening so rapidly that these days, things will keep happening. None of them are gonna stop," Carville said.
He said the recent news on the financial crisis, the war in Georgia, and other new topics will change the political debates so quickly, people would get overwhelmed by a lot of information.
"This [Presidential] race has been so unbelievable fascinating. You're living in a rapid age of change," he said.
The big news, however, these days is that there is now a great divide in American politics, and it is no longer geographic. It will be generational, he stressed.
Young people who have been born in the age of rapid dissemination of information, in the age of YouTube and the Internet, the Presidential race is also going to be affected by how much information is targeting the young generation of voters.
"This is going to be the first Presidential elections where there will be an enormous generation gap in this country," Carville said.
News story ideas are now driven by what people find on the Internet, added Matalin.
She cited how imitators on YouTube have created satirical videos of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin -- a phenomenon which is somehow affecting how the youth see political candidates.
Matalin stressed that in the age of the Internet, there is also a paradox of having too much information.
"Today, you have more information, but not all are good," she said.
About 43,000 attendees are expected to join this year's Oracle Open World here in San Francisco. There are over 18,000 sessions scheduled with about 450 exhibiting partners lining up to showcase their wares and their solutions. Of the 9,000-plus products and solutions of Oracle, Katz said about 300 of them will be demonstrated this year.
There will also be a total of six keynote talks, including those of Paul Otellini, president and CEO of Intel Corp.; Mark Hurd, chairman of the board and CEO of HP; and Larry Ellison, CEO of Oracle.
|
