2012 election

Election 2012 on Facebook: Chatter reaches new heights

While there's no telling how much impact Facebook had on U.S voters, the social network says its users talked a lot, creating more election buzz than ever.

There were 71.7 million election-related mentions in posts and comments in the U.S. yesterday, and 88.7 million globally, Facebook said today.

The company's data team used its "Talk Meter" to measure the chatter -- posts and comments -- around the election and, ranking them on a scale of 1 to 10, Facebook said. Election 2012 buzz came in at a 9.27. That compares to … Read more

Can Nate Silver and friends nail their presidential predictions?

Anyone who's even remotely interested in this year's contest between President Barack Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has no doubt seen countless polls, many of which have shown the incumbent in the lead, while many others have given the nod to the challenger.

In recent weeks, many headlines have declared the election a tossup. A common narrative being spread in newspapers, on blogs, on social media, and on TV nationwide, is that no one will have any idea who will be elected president until all the counting is done because the race is simply too close … Read more

Our favorite free apps for Election Day 2012

Weathered by debates and endless political advertisements? We're in the home stretch of the 2012 U.S. election season now. Whether you've already voted or are still mulling politicians and propositions, there are plenty of apps to tap for an up-to-the minute perspective on the various battles.

Scan our brief list of mobile apps that can help you vote and stay in tune with the rapid-fire developments sure to occur tomorrow. Got a favorite app you're leaning on for election information? Let us know in the comments section. … Read more

Amazon looks at book purchases to size up presidential race

Amazon is culling sales data to determine what the election season conversation might be about in each of the 50 U.S. states.

The e-retail giant yesterday launched the Amazon Election Heat Map 2012. The map lists all 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, and assigns either a red or blue color to each, depending on the number of conservative- or liberal-minded books purchased by citizens. If a state has purchased more liberal books, it'll be shaded blue. States with more conservative book purchases will be shaded red.

Judging by the current map, the U.S. … Read more

Obama still beats Romney in digital messaging -- study

While Mitt Romney is getting better at harnessing the power of the Internet for campaigning, the current POTUS still dominates the online world.

President Barack Obama's campaign has used more direct digital messaging than Romney's campaign, according to a Pew Research Center report released today.

The report notes Romney's attempts to catch up to Obama's tech savvy, with Romney's most recent stunt involving the announcement of his VP pick via an app. The report also mentions Obama's 2008 sucess with social media campaigning.

The research -- part of the center's studies over the … Read more

Facebook and Washington state join forces to register voters

Washington state is the first state to get hip to social media for its voter registration. According to the Associated Press, the secretary of state's office announced today that it will feature an app on its Facebook page letting residents register to vote.

"In this age of social media and more people going online for services, this is a natural way to introduce people to online registration and leverage the power of friends on Facebook to get more people registered," co-director of elections Shane Hamlin told the Associated Press.

The app was designed by Microsoft, which joined … Read more

CNN and Facebook go all social on the 2012 election

Some Facebook users may not need that cardboard voting booth this year -- CNN and Facebook are partnering up to put that bright social media spotlight on voting in the 2012 election.

The media behemoths announced the partnership today, which includes a "I'm Voting" Facebook app that lets users commit to voting while endorsing specific candidates and issues. The commitments will then be displayed on users' timelines, news feeds and real-time tickers.

The app, which will be available in English and Spanish, will show which of your Facebook friends also supported the issue or candiate you voted … Read more

Michelle Obama joins Twitter as 2012 election nears

First Lady Michelle Obama officially joined Twitter this morning, and after only four tweets, she has 185,000 followers and counting.

"Hi, everyone, and thanks for the warm welcome. Look forward to staying in touch with you here. -mo," she first tweeted.

As the 2012 election season heats up, it's all hands on deck for Team Obama. The president, who joined Twitter during his 2008 election campaign and has almost 12 million followers, welcomed his wife onto the social networking site. "It's not every day we get to welcome the First Lady of the United … Read more

Obama campaign turns to Tumblr for 2012 race

President Barack Obama's campaign yesterday opened up its first Tumblr account to help get the word out about their candidate.

"We'd like this Tumblr to be a huge collaborative storytelling effort--a place for people across the country to share what's going on in our respective corners of it and how we're getting involved in this campaign to keep making it better," the campaign wrote its first post on the page.

Currently, the Tumblr page has three posts, including an image of the campaign's Ohio offices and an excerpt from the President's address … Read more