Washington – The Internet is growing so rapidly as a source of political information that in August more people than ever went to the Web for political updates, even more than during the peak of the 2004 presidential campaign, according to study released Wednesday.
On a typical August day, 26 million Americans were using the Internet to get information about politics and the upcoming congressional election, the nonpartisan Pew Internet Project survey found.
During November of the 2004 election, only 21 million were checking the Web for political information.
“We were very surprised to see that August usage exceeded that of November 2004,” said John Horrigan, principal author of the study, which was based on phone interviews of a sample of 3,001 adults. “Midterm elections tend to attract less interest, and August comes before people are focused on the election.”
This year’s surge in Internet usage looks even more dramatic when compared with the last midterm congressional election.
A Pew survey in July 2002 showed just 11 million Americans were turning to the Internet for political information.
Horrigan said voters increasingly are seeking online political news both because the content is more attractive and they have much faster Internet service.
In August, 41 percent of U.S. adults had broadband service at home. In July 2002, during the last midterm election cycle, just 12 percent had such service, leaving the overwhelming majority with slow dial-up connections.
Having a broadband connection is especially important to adults under 30, he said.
Compared with older Americans, “younger people are generally a little less news hungry,” he said. “But they tend to get more news when they have that high- speed connection.”
The Pew study found that the typical person using the Internet for political information was a male college graduate with broadband service.
Horrigan said that as the Nov. 7 election draws closer, “the numbers will bump up” at politically oriented Web destinations.
And that surge will have political organizers scrambling to maximize the Internet’s ability to influence voters and boost contributions.
Brian Schaffner, an assistant professor of government at American University, said the Internet’s role in financing campaigns has become vital: “The overhead costs are so much lower (online) than any other method of fundraising,” such as mailing brochures or making phone calls.
This year, the Internet will play another role: video distributor.
With the help of video-sharing websites such as YouTube, “individuals are playing more of a role in circulating mistakes and gaffes,” Schaffner said, noting that Sen. George Allen, R-Va., was caught on tape calling a dark-skinned man a “macaca” during a campaign event.
