Influence of Social Media & Technology By Gregory Samuels

Social Media has become the new election battleground for India’s nationwide parliamentary elections There are more than 200 million internet users in India Twitter and Facebook usage in India is the highest in the world outside of the United States How do politicians use Social Media to its advantage?

Narendra Modi, leader of the BJP, has 3.68 million followers on twitter, over 69 million page views on Google plus, and 12 million likes on Facebook. He uses the social push as a persuasion tool to gain more voters They believe social media is an effective tool to amplify their political messages The public can engage in political discussions and debates over the internet on these social sites This allows people to state their views and opinions, even opens up their minds to new ideas.

Political parties from both sides all use social network trackers to show how many users talk or display interests for the candidates 100 million Facebook users in India, most of them active, ranging from ages Allows young people to become more involved and vote Young adults have the ability to spread the candidates ideas through word of mouth

Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) Satellites Smart Phones Mobile Devices How are these technologies put into action?

Electronic Voting Machines are easier to transport than regular ballot boxes. EVMs can count votes very fast and the results can be declared with-in 2-3 hours compared to ballot paper system which is hours on average A country like India where illiteracy is still a factor, the EVMs are easier than the paper ballot system. EVMs can also record a maximum of 3,840 votes

Modi used satellites to host live interactions with the public. Google helped all the political parties with their online strategies by organizing weekly hangouts with the politicians. This was done using computers and tablets. Campaigns used apps on their smart phones for internal communication and relaying party updates

The change from interacting with the public only through campaign trails and mass rallies to reaching them instantly on their computers, tablets, and phones Process of voting, counting votes, and transporting votes are now more efficient. Candidates can now connect with the public in a more personal way and become more in tune with the culture. Campaign info can be relayed between the workers easier.

There are over half a million pledges coming from all over India which is progress. It is a direct influence from social media and technology 150 million people will be voting for the first time this year in India

India has been making huge advances in many aspects including the ones covered in this presentation. They used social media and technology to bring about change in India. People now can express themselves any way they want to and now they have many outlets to do so. They now have information at their finger tips to help them make a decision on who they would like to lead their country.