February 17, 2012 •
Alaska Legislature Makes iPhone App Available
Android app expected by April, before session ends
Good news iPhone owners! NCSL’s blog just noted the Alaska Legislature has come out with an app allowing you to keep up with legislative news on your phone. Best of all, it is free!
According to the blog, this is what you will find: “The app provides information on committee schedules, bill status, the house and senate calendars, and contact information of every legislator in both chambers. It also allows the user to stream committee hearings directly from your phone and watch the proceedings in real time.”
Be sure to take look at “New Alaska iPhone App” by Morgan Cullen on The Thicket.
Here is the iTunes App Store page with The Alaska Legislature App.
Thank you to Research Associate George Ticoras for pointing me in the direction of this news.
February 13, 2012 •
News You Can Use Digest – February 13, 2012
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
Federal:
Ethics Reform Bill to Ban Insider Trading by Congress Members, Executive Branch by House
Obama Yields in Marshaling of Super PAC
From the States and Municipalities:
Arizona
Arizona Supreme Court Bars Candidate with Limited English
California
High-Speed Rail Tapped State Fund for Unusual Lobbying Contract
Connecticut
For Donovan, Lobbyist Bucks Seep Through Loophole
Georgia
With House Bill Stalled, Senator Targets Lobbyist Gifts
Michigan
Critics Worry Senate Ad Will Revive Asian-Bashing
Montana
Schweitzer Appoints Former Labor Leader to Head Political Ethics Office
Oklahoma
FBI Created Fake Company during Investigation of Oklahoma Legislature
Texas
New Rules Would Target ‘Bundlers’ Who Raise Big Sums for Austin Races
West Virginia
W.Va. Lawmakers Navigate Lobby Ban, Social Media
Wisconsin
Wisconsin GOP Leader Admits He’s Packing Heat in State Assembly
State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 80 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.
News You Can Use is a news service provided at no charge only to clients of our online Executive Source Guides, or ALERTS™ consulting clients.
February 6, 2012 •
West Virginia Legislature Gives Reminder about Use of Social Media
Because of the social media capabilities of the latest mobile devices, the West Virginia Legislature is putting out a reminder to lawmakers about the ban on electronic communications during floor sessions.
For full news coverage, read:
“W.Va. lawmakers navigate lobby ban, social media” by The Associated Press in the Washington Examiner.
“W.Va. lawmakers seek buffer from e-lobbying but not blockade with public in social media age” by Lawrence Messina (Associated Press) in The Republic.
Photo of the West Virginia State Capitol Building by Analogue Kid on Wikipedia.
February 3, 2012 •
Lobbying, Campaign Finance, and Redistricting in the News
Friday News Roundup
Lobbying
“A record year for lobbying industry” by Michael Shaw in the Sacramento Business Journal.
“Lobbying Money Hits New Record” by Jenny O’Mara on KBPS.org.
Campaign finance
“Michigan Democrats are taking 1st shot at corporate funding with proposed ethics, campaign finance reform” by Rob South in Michigan Live.
Gov 2.0 and Social Media
“Consumers Turn to Social Media for Presidential Campaign Info” in yesterday’s eMarketer.
“New York City Readies for a Website Overhaul” by Sarah Rich in Government Technology.
Redistricting
Iowa – “5 Iowa legislators resign following redistricting” by The Associated Press in the Muscatine Journal.
Massachusetts – “In redistricting’s wake, Rep. Paul Adams opts to run for state Senate” by Matt Murphy in the Boston Herald.
Ohio – “Only 3 of 16 districts competitive in new map” by William Hershey in the Dayton Daily News.
Pennsylvania – “Targeted lawmakers stuck in ‘political limbo’” by Rachel Weaver in today’s Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
January 19, 2012 •
Internet Companies Flex Muscles, Challenge to Traditional Lobbying?
However you may feel about SOPA and PIPA, one thing became clear in the last day or so – something new has happened in the realm of lobbying. Here are three articles that take a look at the implications of the internet blackout from a government relations perspective:
“Google Protest of Anti-Piracy Bills Upends Traditional Lobbying” by Eric Engleman in Bloomberg News.
“One early winner in SOPA protest: Wikipedia” by Charles Cooper on CBS News.
“Silicon Valley learns fast in game of lobbying” by April Dembosky in Financial Times.
January 17, 2012 •
Political Campaigns Vie for Social Media Attention
Whether claiming this to be the “year of Facebook” or the “year of Twitter” for political campaigns, news items are covering how political campaigns are using social media to advertise in new ways. Here are a few pieces that appeared today:
“Social media sites in race for lucrative political ads” by Kim Hart (Politico) in the Virginian-Pilot.
“The New Political Battleground: Your Social Network” by David Binetti on TechCrunch.
Mashable talks about new advertising service called Socialitical that helps political campaigns craft ads and find their best audience on Facebook in “New Tool Helps Politicians Advertise on Facebook” by Alex Fitzpatrick.
January 4, 2012 •
Lobbying in the News
New York lobbyist Richard Lipsky to plead guilty, a pep talk for lobbyists to use social media, and a phone app to log lobbying activity.
“Lobbyist Is Expected to Plead Guilty in Corruption Case” by Benjamin Weiser in The New York Times .
“Why Would a Lobbyist Need Social Media?” by John Hall on Social Media Today.
“Too many lobbyists? There’s an app for that” by Anthony Man and Larry Barszewski in The South Florida Sun-Sentinel. (Thank you George Ticoras for seeing this one!)
January 3, 2012 •
The FEC Goes Mobile
The Federal Election Commission (FEC) has unveiled pages optimized for mobile devices.
According to their announcement, you can now view the following on your mobile phone:
- presidential candidate summary data
- a calendar with dates for commission meetings, reporting deadlines, conferences, advisory opinions, and litigation
- an audio archive of recent hearings
- the FEC YouTube channel
- The FEC Twitter feed
FEC Chair Cynthia Bauerly said, “I am pleased to announce the launch of the FEC’s new mobile interface. … I greatly appreciate the efforts of the agency staff who worked on this project, which will further the FEC’s mission of disclosing campaign finance data.”
Here is the FEC’s press release about the new pages.
December 29, 2011 •
Republicans Turn to Social Media as Primaries Approach
Campaigns Utilize Social Media Now More Than Ever
Even something as small as following a candidate on Twitter or liking a candidate’s Facebook page could make someone feel more connected to that candidate and sway them to cast a vote in their direction. While a large portion of voters still claim to be undecided about who they are voting for in the upcoming Republican primaries, this is what Republican candidates are hoping to accomplish by dedicating so many resources to keeping their social media outlets up to date and engaging.
As the Iowa and other early caucuses are coming ever closer, GOP presidential hopefuls are turning more and more to their Twitter, Facebook, and other social media tools to get their messages out to voters and to gather volunteers.
After the success of President Obama’s grassroots social media based campaign back in 2008, social media has been an increasingly important tool that many consider necessary for the success of a political campaign, a fact which nearly all Republican presidential hopefuls have grasped and acted upon.
Read about all the ways the Republican presidential candidates have been utilizing social media in “Republicans Shake More Hands Using Social Media” from the New York Times.
December 28, 2011 •
Like Fantasy Football? Check Out Fantasy Politics!
Create your own custom political team and compete in your league
A new Facebook application called Fanitics, expected to be functioning at the start of the new year, will allow users to compete against others with their fantasy political teams in a similar way as they would compete in fantasy sports games.
Fanatic’s creator, Todd Bouldin explained,
“It’s a lot like fantasy football. You create a league and friends populate it with teams. Your team is populated with politicians who gain points based on a variety of metrics from fundraising, media mentions and public appearances.”
Once you create your team, you can switch out politicians as you wish. Your team can include presidential candidates, governors, and House and Senate members whose actions are all tracked by the game.
Although, the game will probably be utilized more by political buffs early on, this game offers a great learning experience and tool to keep up on local politicians to all participants.
To learn more, read this article.
December 27, 2011 •
Gov 2.0 Round-Up
News at the crossroads of government and social media.
The rise of the digital age has transformed the meaning of open government – Open Government: A New Window on the World- As demands for transparency and amount of data grow for government agencies, budgets shrink – What’s in Store for Government IT in 2012?
- How much is a Twitter follower worth? Man sued for $340,000 for company’s 17,000 Twitter followers – Lawsuit May Determine Who Owns a Twitter Account
December 22, 2011 •
Gov 2.0 Round-Up
News at the crossroads of government and social media.
“In the latest act of online political sabotage, individuals who type newtgingrich.com into their browsers will be directed to one of a number of sites that are embarrassing to Republican primary candidate Newt Gingrich” – Newt Gingrich Attacked By Digital Vandals
“The White House is taking its fight over payroll tax to Twitter with a campaign using the hashtag #40dollars that asks what you can buy with that amount” – White House Uses #40dollars Twitter Campaign to Influence Payroll Tax Debate
“Using cloud technology for elections reporting and results can also save governments money” – Elections Results Websites Heading to Cloud
“The federal government is on pace to close at least 1,200 of its 3,100 data centers by the end of 2015” – Federal CIO: 1,200 Data Centers to Close by 2015
“Proceedings in the Iowa House will be streamed live over the Internet when lawmakers begin the legislative session next month” – Iowa House Action Will be Streamed on Internet
Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, and President Obama are especially successful at utilizing Facebook – Campaigns Capitalize on Facebook
Enjoy!
December 20, 2011 •
Promoted Tweets Being Used by Politicians
Promoted Tweets allow politicians to influence voters in real time
As more and more politicians are becoming Twitter savvy, new tools are being utilized to give individual politicians the edge in the “Twitterverse”. Now presidential candidates such as Mitt Romney and Rick Perry are using promoted tweets to influence voters in real time.
Defined by Twitter, Promoted Tweets are ordinary Tweets that are purchased by advertisers who want to reach a wider group of users or to spark engagement from their existing followers. Besides being labeled as Promoted and appearing at the top of relevant search results pages on Twitter, they act like regular Tweets.
In addition to Mitt Romney and Rick Perry, Herman Cain’s team was also using them to respond to the sexual harassment charges before he removed himself from the race.
These Promoted Tweets help drive traffic to website’s that the promoter wants the public to see as well as bring their opinions and issues to the forefront of conversation on Twitter.
To learn more, read Presidential Candidates Use Promoted Tweets to Sway Voters in Real Time by Cotton Delo.
December 15, 2011 •
Campaign Trails Will Now Be Shown By Foursquare
Foursquare and NBC are teaming up to create new “Campaigns Check-In” feature
Keeping up with the campaign trails of the 2012 presidential candidates will be a lot easier with the new “Campaigns Check-In” feature that Foursquare and NBC are teaming up to create.
The new feature will appear on the recently launched NBCpolitics.com and will allow visitors to see where each of the GOP candidates are making campaign stops in real-time, and where they’ve been throughout their entire election campaign.
Also, for the Foursquare users out there, you will be able to recieve unique, co-branded political badges from NBC News beginning in 2012.
Learn more in NBC Maps the 2012 Election Campaign Trail With Foursquare by Alex Fitzpatrick.
State and Federal Communications, Inc. provides research and consulting services for government relations professionals on lobbying laws, procurement lobbying laws, political contribution laws in the United States and Canada. Learn more by visiting stateandfed.com.
