It's Election Night!

This is an exciting night for our country. No matter who you support, this is the day we, as Americans, get to exercise our right and privilege to vote. What a change not only in our country, but in the way our results are getting to us. Looking at MSNBC's website, we can get the widget of our country's map that will detail how the election is going. Four years ago, widgets were something you studied in Econ 101!! Blogs are furiously being written to stay current. Emails are flying. Citizens can contribute their stories of election day to their favorite news site.

The new and emerging media is certainly being showcased on an evening such as this. But we all noticed it in the past few months. Emails announcing who their running mates were. Campaigns now rely on the new media to reach the masses faster and more efficient. Social networks got in on the action by urging its members to vote. On Facebook, members could "donate their status" to remind their friends of election day and show their support for their favorite candidate.

Marketers are rewarding us for our votes as well. On my Facebook page, I learned I could go to Ben and Jerry's and receive a free ice cream cone. I could visit Krispy Kreme Doughnuts and receive a red, white and blue star shaped doughnut and to finish out my free election meal, I could go to Starbucks for a hot cup of coffee. But it was Ben and Jerry's who advertised this special on Facebook. If there are any MySpace users, I wonder if marketers used this social network as well.

Clearly, with new media emerging, election campaigns is using these new mediums to get their messages out to the masses.

Clearly, this night is showing how far we have come with new and emerging media.