Technology has certainly found its place in politics over the past four years, as is especially apparent come election season. Be it for traffic, data mining or a means of performing civic duty, the big names in tech, from Amazon to Microsoft to Google and Facebook, are providing the masses with a set of shiny new tools to be heard online.
Amazon’s Election Heat Map
Can we predict the outcome of the election based on the political books we buy? Amazon is taking a respectable stab at that feat with their new interactive tool. The Election Heat Map gives book shoppers a state-by-state look at what fellow constituents are reading, separating political books into one of two camps: blue (liberal) and red (conservative). “Blue” books include the likes of The New New Deal and The New Jim Crow, while the top “Red Books” range from The Amateur to Obama’s America: Unmaking the American Dream.
Election 2012 On Xbox Live
Microsoft’s Election 2012 on Xbox Live lets users watch and interact with live election coverage right from their Xbox. The Republican National Convention and Democratic National Convention will be available for live streaming, along with the impending Presidential debates. Users will be able to participate in a series of polls eliciting opinions on various aspects of the election. Media partners include YouGov, NBC and Rock The Vote.
YouTube Elections Hub
YouTube calls its new Elections Hub “a one-stop channel for key political moments from now through the upcoming U.S. election day on November 6.” Users can watch speeches from the floor of the RNC and DNC, see Google Plus Hangouts with the people behind the scenes of the campaigns, and watch a live stream of the Presidential and Vice Presidential debates. The hub will also feature coverage from a number of news outlets, including ABC News, Al Jazeera English, BuzzFeed, Larry King, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.
Facebook + CNN’s I’m Voting App
The new I’m Voting App from Facebook and CNN is pretty self explanatory. Authorize the app to let your network know that you plan to head to the voting booth come November. And in case you weren’t getting enough political banter on Facebook before, the app also allows users to voice their opinions on candidates, issues and debates (you can probably imagine how that dialogue goes). But one thing about the app that may prove to be incredibly useful is the wealth of data Facebook and CNN will gather over the next several months.
How do you plan to tune into election season? Share your favorite politically-oriented tech outlets with us below.
