Social Media: It's a Political Battle

Tuesday. It's not quite half way through the week, nor is it the absolute beginning. Usually my Tuesdays are pretty dull. I go to class, I come home, I nap, I think about doing school work - pretty average if you ask me. Although it may be a dull day for me, there's never a dull moment in the social media world. Today, I decided to examine the political stories unfolding on social media websites. 


Many writers and bloggers have coined the next US Presidential Election as a social media battle. In 2008, social media networks were not as developed and widely used as they are today. Facebook has over 500 million users and Twitter is a little behind with 175 million users. Either way, there is no denying that millions of people are connected and sharing thoughts every day over one of these social mediums.

On Monday President Obama released his 2012 re-election campaign. However, this time it was in the form of a video that went viral.  I say it went viral because within a matter of minutes my Facebook newsfeed was bombarded with "I'm In!" likes for Obama. Obama's video release was an excellent and quick way to spread the word about his re-election. The amazing thing about social media is that each time someone liked the video, they could share it, retweet it, email it, and spread it to hundreds of people with the click of a button.

Shortly after Obama's video release, Republicans were prepared to release their rebuttal video. Whereas Obama wanted "change" potential GOP candidate, Tim Pawlenty (R- Minnesota) is telling us it's time for a "new direction." (Note to all politicians: I'm kind of sick of these generic "change" "directions" "it begins here" mottos.) Pawlenty's video is the exact opposite of Obama's. Instead of smiling faces talking about how excited they are for the election, the GOP video uses brisk, rough images of gas prices and financial crisis to depict the current state of America. If you haven't seen the price of gasoline, I recommend just staying indoors. The video definitely uses "shock value" to convey the importance of this next election.

Surely, the political battle can't stop here. Politicians took their thoughts and ideas to Twitter. Republican Mitt Romney called out Barack Obama saying, "@barackobama I look forward to hearing details on your jobs plan, as are 14m unemployed Americans.”

It will be important to monitor the political chatter during the next few days as million watch and share political videos. As we continue to share our personal thoughts and opinions through social media, the use of tags, retweets, and other tools will help politicians keep an eye on how the American public is feeling. #imready

Dating Services - For Mac Users Only

Online dating websites are the new "I met him at the bar" story behind relationships. According to studies, 1 in 6 people meet online and then get married. It seemed almost taboo to me a few years ago when I first heard about online dating. Something about it seemed creepy, invasive and unsafe (I've seen too many Lifetime movies). Although I have never joined, or used, an online dating website, it seems to be the latest and greatest way to meet your future lover.


As a Mac lover, I laughed when I found this website called Cupidtino: an online dating service specifically aimed for Mac users.


As it says on the website:

"Cupidtino is the first ever "Mac-inspired" dating site. It's goal is to bring Apple fans and lovers of beautiful hardware and software design together."

Is this really a dating service? At first I thought the website was a joke, but it is the real deal. Developed by four men in San Francisco, Cupidtino is the revolutionary way to meet somebody. I thought I was the only one who was in love with my Apple products. However, it turns out there is an entire network of people who feel the same way, and are searching for someone who feels the same way. The mission statement on the website really made me smile. Apparently you are supposed to date people with similar interests, so Cupidtino is just saving you some time and narrowing down the candidates. Who could complain about a service like that? 


For those of you who are single and love Apple products, maybe Cupidtino is the website for you. For the same price as a venti Mocha at Starbucks ($4.79) , you could potentially meet your technological-significant other. Why wouldn't you want to date someone who would rather take their computer out to dinner than you?

Cupidtino has covered all the necessary steps to providing a great dating website. Users are able to link their Twitter and Facebook accounts, so your potential mate can get to know you even better. 


In an era where technology and social media are king, Cupidtino is joining the revolution and trying to bring people closer together. Overall, if I was single, I'd say it seems to entertaining to not try. Cheers. 


Cupidtino: Meet an Apple fanboy or girl