The Internet is an ever-growing influence on our daily lives, and a recent study conducted by Pew Research Center shows the same goes for the political process.  The study found three-quarters of Web users were online during the 2008 Presidential campaign, gathering information and communicating with others about politics.  According to Pew, this was the first time more than half of the voting age population went online to connect about politics.  CQ Politics reported:

Six in 10 used the internet to get news or information about the campaign, representing 44 percent of all adults, and nearly one-fifth did so on a daily basis.

Though the Internet offers a diversity of perspectives, the study also found that rather than gathering information on the election and candidates from traditional news sites, many people visited Web sites reflective of their personal opinions.  According to CQ Politics:

Pew found that politically-active internet users are gravitating towards sites that share their points of view rather than news sites that do traditional journalism. The number of users joining that trend grew from 26 percent in 2004 to 33 percent last year. Forty-four percent of Democratic online users said they visit politically like-minded sites, up from 34 percent in 2004, and 35 percent of Republicans do the same, up from 26 percent in 2006.

Last month the Illinois Technology Partnership hosted Illinois 2.0, a digital media workshop in Springfield, where we explored to what extent the Internet and new media are influencing politics right here in Illinois.   Policymakers, advocates, media, and others discussed ways the medium is shaping the political process and how they are using digital media to communicate with a larger audience.

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