When Politics, Technology, and Virtual Worlds collide
- Posted September 2nd, 2008 at 17:08 EDT by PSU Staff
- 47 Comments
It's hard to imagine life without high speed Internet, text messaging, or gaming consoles — technology is everywhere. Except a few places. Take politics, for example.
Most of us think of politicians as old, gray-haired men in dark suits — the last people you'd expect to see embracing technology, and it's true for the most part. But remember the John Edwards billboard in Second Life? That was an exception. He spent big bucks to advertise to our generation. And it was probably one of his interns' ideas. Whether they knew it or not, this changed politics. A new standard was being set for political campaigns. But it wasn't enough to get most politicians on board... yet. That's about to change.
Picture ads in Grand Theft Auto informing you about a political candidate. Imagine driving a special edition car decked out with Barack Obama decals while speeding past billboards promoting John McCain. Visualize politicians holding political rallies on the PlayStation Network where you can offer real-time feedback. This push would involve and educate our generation of voters.
Envision traveling the virtual worlds of Second Life or PlayStation Home, and stumbling across candidates like Barack Obama, Joe Biden, John McCain, and Sarah Palin –- with avatars fully pimped out in campaign memorabilia –- hosting virtual debates and rallies. Who knows, maybe they’ll even make an appearance on World of Warcraft’s Fields of Honor, engaging in gladiatorial battles for glory, prestige, and power. Okay, that last one isn't too likely, but it would be pretty awesome to watch.
Rick Perry, current Texas governor, encourages gaming companies to make the Lone Star state their home. He’s calling gaming "a medium ready to be tapped." He even backed it up during his recent keynote address at the E3 2008 conference. Perry announced that he’s trying to pass incentive packages to lure companies to the state. But technology entrepreneurship is already alive and well in Texas.
Michael Williams, Texas Railroad Commissioner, knows the potential of video games, thus he formed the summer camp Be the Game. The summer clinic teaches kids about math and science through playing and programming video games — and they love it.
For Austin, TX start-up companies like Piryx, the future looks a bit like this: candidates talk to you, hear what you have to say, and implement your feedback appropriately. You have an influence. Whether it's messages on your Facebook page, or candidates running around in PlayStation Home, you'll be in the loop. Imagine if candidates used solely their Internet connections to tell you about the issues — no longer faces on the TV, but rather people you can take a stroll with through Home Square. And maybe, just maybe, you can convince them to help you rid the United States of the Chimeran scourge in Resistance 2.
Contributing writers: Eric Blattberg, Adam Hook
Comments
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streetracer67856 |
intimid8ionn8ion- 5:17pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 1
Good read, and yea, wtf is up with McCain choosing Palin as his running mate? Isn't his entire campaign about him having more experience... and then he goes and picks a governer who has been in "office" for TWO years... seriously...
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zombieking36
- 5:31pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 5
vid games is my escape from real life, KEEP THE POLITICS OUT!!!!!
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caveman7
- 5:36pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 6
Seriously, I really hope that crap doesn't start happening. It's bad enough trying to watch the opinionated news now days, I don't want to be pestered by one-way advertising, stupid rants about nothing, and finger pointing. Just let me play my freakn' game please.
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RandomBeef
- 6:34pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 11
I don't care about american politics. Bring in the UK stuff.
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MARKS-THE-NAME
- 6:48pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 12
Frack the politics put pornstars,cars,films. (etc) online updated billboards.
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NoMercy666 |
Ask me...- 7:05pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 13
@1
Also, her 17 Year-old daughter is pregnant.
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Denali2 |
NEJI64- 7:06pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 14
@caveman7 i agree with you i'm into politics but i dont want to turn my PS3 on and go into HOME and see them trying to get my vote. then wats next turn HOME on and they'll be trying to get me to join the millitary. next they will take THE SIMPSONS SONG "YVAN EHT NIOJ" join the navy lmao loooool who seen that episode
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TestosteRohne |
TestosteRohne- 7:22pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 15
Mugabe is top of my list in Far Cry 2!
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Falanx13 |
Falanx13- 8:08pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 17
I say as long as I don't get politics rammed down my throat like in the above examples, I could be fine with it. If you like political party 'A' over 'B', you should be able to freely join a 'group A' area, kinda like MySpace. That way you will only see these ads IF YOU WANT TO.
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M-O-P-E-Y |
Falanx13- 8:11pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 18
I think if politicians persued campaigns in places like Home it would just lead to mass craziness. We all know how bold ppl are when all u hear is a voice. Just imagine Obama or whoever surrounded by a mob of 13 year olds whos parents disagree with his views. Dumb idea
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Battlebum |
Maestro_- 8:24pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 20
@ 1
You seem very uninformed. She has been governor of Alaska for 18 months, commands the national guard in alaska, deals with off shore drilling in alaska (which she would be an expert and advises the US to do). She also has to deal with several disasters every year in her state that most don't have to deal with: blizzards. Before that she was a mayor in one of alaska's major cities. She currently holds an amazing 86% approval rating. She has more executive experience than Obama and Biden combined. How is this? Neither Obama nor Biden have been outside of the legislature. Obama hasn't even finished his first term lol.
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edward_moffet |
edd- 8:33pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 21
imagine political debates taking place in home
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bracomadar |
bracomadar- 8:55pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 24
Ron Paul/LittleBigPlanet '08!!! That's who I'm voting for :)
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DeadOnArrival06 |
DeadOnArrival06- 9:07pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 25
Thank you, #21. I'm glad there's still people like you who calls out these ill-informed fools.
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PS3-The Ultimate Machine
- 9:47pm BST - September 2nd, 2008
- 27
Nice read but highly unlikely,at least until the next elections.Actually now that i think about,it shouldn't even HAPPEN!!You wanna know why?It's because when you come home tired from a long hard day,the LAST thing you need is Politics corrupting the only medium which is the only escape to purity in this propaganda filled,world of hatred and politics.I don't my only freedom be also corrupted because of some idiotic pencil pushers who have nothing better to do but try and manipulate ppl,on a national scale.
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blueberry_buds
- 3:36am BST - September 3rd, 2008
- 30
when im playing a videogame I NEVER WANT TO SEE THE WORDS "JOHN MCCAIN" ON MY TV SCREEN- hes going to invade iran, syriana, push more money into the middle east, kill more innocent civilians, increase tax breaks for high(rich)class families and corporations.
if i had the chance i'd throw him and all the candidates (besides ron paul) in a pit of rotting middle eastern corpses and not feel 1 bit of regret.
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primalbreath |
jdawg222- 9:14am BST - September 3rd, 2008
- 32
@31 nice ron paul was the best pick to be people are to blind. but seriously sara pallin is the perfect choice. i dont want to type much but all i got to say is she alone is more experianced than obama
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terminator12259 |
tacitassassin25- 10:13am BST - September 3rd, 2008
- 33
i dont want that crap in my game, politics are always the same crap, lies on top of lies.
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KillaRizzay
- 11:21am BST - September 3rd, 2008
- 34
@ streetracer
ya mccain has no chance of winning now.. I mean the american people are stupid but experience was mccains entire defense and now they just lost it. They're clearly trying to scoop Hillary supporters
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Wallin |
Wallin- 1:38pm BST - September 3rd, 2008
- 35
Meh, Id hate it if i were to drive through Liberty City and see real life adds for politicians. I mean i dont play games to get to see these guys there aswell, i get enough of that in real life. Now i live in norway, but if i were to drive through Liberty City and see Jens Stoltenberg (Norwegian politician) on a billboard id break that cd in a heartbeat.
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aajohnny
- 6:50pm BST - September 3rd, 2008
- 37
are you kidding McCain losing? lol he's gonna win,I garuntee that when people step into the booth they will push McCain,because they won't vote for a black man ( I am no rascist its probably true) also would you have a president that wants to disarms OUR the US nuclear capablities when countries like iran,russia,n.korea keep making them,,if we disarm ours,we will be nuked,Obama is a waste,he's not ready,Obama is a rascist,baby killing inexperianced retard that doesn't know what he's doing.You wanna know politics come Pm me,Obama is just saying stuff he will never do,he is a huge racist read his book,the media is to biased to tell people.Now would you want to drill here in the usa and lower the price in gas,instead of giving our money to the iraq,and iran,to a bunch of terrorist that hate our guts and want us all dead,and using our money for their nukes.Mhm think about that.
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1solidsnake |
solid1snake67- 11:17am BST - September 4th, 2008
- 39
ok. sarah Palin is the best pick for john mccain. if you would watch cnn or fox news or even talk radio you would understand because she relates more to us than any politican in washington. and don't say well, Obama is for change. he has no substance lol sarah palin has way more experiance and more days in office than that wanna be has. i listen to alot of talk radio when i'm at work. but, don't vote for the OBama O'sama bin ladin who??
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sn-plazaskater |
Bronze_Panda- 12:04am BST - September 5th, 2008
- 42
i kinda disagree...the last thing i want to see while playing my games is an obama or mccain billboard......
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TheWorldEndsWithMe |
DonovanTheICEMAN- 2:56am BST - September 5th, 2008
- 43
Ok, this isn't a spot for political debate at any rate. As far as the political ads coming to a game system near you? It is going to happen to some degree or another, I think the only positive here is that political candidates will finally have to stop harping on games and gamers as a drain on society. Think about it, if they advertise to us, they will be forced to respect us.
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zonz
- 2:00pm BST - September 6th, 2008
- 45
@39 um what's up with your comment, you chose almost the worst ways to defend McCain: No one will vote for a blakc man, we're gunna get nuked, we're gunna have to pay Iraq for nukes, Obama's just an ignorant liar. People should vote for McCain because of his experience, and his runningmate
(which although she has less experience than mcCain she still has more than Obama, and even if she didn't I do not understand where people get the assumption that suddenly there is no experience on the team, McCain didn't just drop off the face of the earth, and he's the one running for president)
with her consistancy and conservativism. How can anyone vote for Obama? No one knows who he really is. His change campaign is an emotional manipulating crock from people reacting to Bush presidency. He only says what his adivsors want him to say, as shown when he actually had to speak his own mind, and told Americans that aborted babies who survive should be left to die on the operating table. And etc...
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Den_UK |
Den_UK- 9:10pm BST - September 12th, 2008
- 46
I really hate Gorden Brown personally; just give me my money you Scottish tos+er. This sod+ing new deal is sh+te employment is hard to find due to Thacher's regiem as it is, and now you give me a hard time for not having a job, I tell you what I can't believe we have some scotch ar+e sodder as the prime, what is this shi++ole comming to> Britain is dead, its worn out , we had our time, now its the united states, but their time will end, every empire must fall if history has told us anything, but on the bright side the Roman Empire lasted a good 500 hundred years, but the day will come when there is a new superpower. Why Jesus have you betrayed me you will kill me , heaven knows why you would take my eyes, and close them forever.
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