CQ TODAY ONLINE NEWS
June 26, 2009 – 12:47 a.m.
Facebook: Opposition Research Dream Come True
By Rachel Kapochunas, CQ Staff
When 26-year old Emanuel Pleitez launched his House campaign in California earlier this year, he decided to use his existing Facebook account for promotion.
“I did take one quick glance through my pictures and I said, ‘There’s nothing bad there.’ And so I left them all up,” Pleitez, a former transition staffer for the Obama administration, said in a recent interview.
But as California’s 32nd District special primary election drew closer, several of Pleitez’s Facebook pictures resurfaced in a direct mail attack piece paid for by another Democratic candidate, California state Sen. Gil Cedillo.
“Here’s a sample of what you’ve been missing if you haven’t checked out 26-year old congressional candidate Emanuel Pleitez’s Facebook page on the Internet: Lots of women, hard liquor, dancing on the table, and all-night partying,” read the mailer, which was accompanied by multiple pictures from Pleitez’ page.
Neither Pleitez nor Cedillo made it past the first round of voting May 19.
But Facebook is becoming ubiquitous for politicians, and strategists say the more it’s used the greater the possibility that Facebook will become a campaign weapon.
Opposition researchers say they couldn’t be happier.
“It’s a godsend for us,” said Jason Stanford, president of Stanford Research. “Most times you have to get someone’s enemies to give you an embarrassing photo. Now, candidates themselves are posting them on the Internet.”
A candidate can control access to Facebook photos by utilizing the system’s privacy settings, Stanford said.
Even with that option, Pleitez elected not to use them, saying he wanted to start off with a “transparent” campaign. Consequently, some of the images used against him suggested he was inebriated, while others showed him surrounded by women. In others, Cedillo claims Pleitez flashed gang signs. Pleitez said he was doing nothing wrong in the photos.
Stanford said using privacy settings may help candidates avoid such problems, but he believes the Pleitez incident and others indicate a larger problem.
“There’s a way to live your life publicly but not stupidly and the Internet generation is late to the discretion party,” Stanford said.
Children in the Campaign Spotlight
Prior to Pleitez’s experience, Facebook pictures of several candidates’ young family members drew unwanted attention to politicians’ campaigns.
In 2006, Facebook pictures of Tennessee Republican Senate candidate Bob Corker ’s daughter kissing a woman and attending an event where people were partially clothed made the rounds on the Internet.
That same year, a supporter of Democrat Brad Ellsworth ’s opponent for Indiana’s 8th District reportedly alerted the local news to Facebook pictures of Ellsworth’s 19-year old daughter drinking alcohol.
In both incidents, most major news outlets and the candidates themselves largely ignored reports of the photos. Both candidates won their elections.
In 2008, a Facebook controversy involving the son of Colorado Republican Senate candidate Bob Schaffer, made headlines.
Justin Schaffer, 19, issued a public apology after word circulated of his Facebook “bumper stickers” which included “Slavery Gets Sh*t Done,” an image of Jesus holding a machine gun in front of a Confederate flag and captioned “What Would a Republican Jesus Do?” and others.
By the time his son’s Facebook page made headlines, Schaffer was already regarded as the underdog in his race because of a generally tough climate for GOP candidates as well as questions regarding his business dealings and his connections to convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Schaffer was bested by Democrat Mark Udall in November.
Even something as simple as joining a group on Facebook has put a candidate’s child in the spotlight. In August 2007, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuiliani’s 17-year-old daughter attracted nationwide attention when she joined a Facebook group in support of Barack Obama . At the time, her father was still campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination.
She later removed herself from the group.
Giuliani dropped out of the race in January 2008 after a string of poor primary showings.
Despite the fodder these candidates’ children provided for their opponents, children are often off-limits when it comes to political attacks, and for good reason, said Stanford.
“Voters are really sophisticated about that. They don’t care what politicians’ kids do ... it doesn’t really figure into their decision on whether or not to vote for someone and it usually makes them punish whoever brought it up in the first place,” Stanford said.
Even political staffers and individuals assigned to work on Facebook have misstepped, and the immediate nature of the Web means that changes or corrections posted can’t be easily rescinded.
Last year, Democratic Rep. Robert E. Andrews of New Jersey told newspapers he reprimanded a staffer for his U.S. Senate campaign after the staffer notified supporters of a campaign event with the subject line “free booze and everyone gets laid” on Facebook.
“I promise to be more careful with my subject lines from here on out,” the staffer wrote 15 minutes after the offending message was released.
‘Where the Voters Are’
There are no firm statistics on how many politicians actively use Facebook, but the company says the numbers will only increase as membership continues to rise. Facebook claims 200 million active users, including 60 million in the United States. The site figured prominently in the 2008 elections in which all major presidential candidates used Facebook and other Internet tools.
“Candidates are going to Facebook because that’s where the voters are,” said Adam Conner, Facebook’s D.C. Associate for Privacy and Public Policy.
Andrew Rasiej, founder of Personal Democracy Forum, which covers the intersection of politics and technology, said Internet tools are “the most powerful, least expensive, and effective organizing tool ever invented by man.”
As long as Facebook remains a driving force, candidates need to learn how to use it most effectively, he said.
“Facebook has become the new town square in democracy with all the good things and all the bad things,” he added, “... but if you want to be at the center of a community . . . and be heard, there’s no better place in our current day and age than Facebook to amplify your message and to find out what others are saying or thinking about what you’re saying.”
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