What can the arts learn from Obama’s campaign?
If Barack Obama wins the presidency the vaunted role that the internet’s played in his campaign will be key to his success. Even if he looses the presidency, Obama’s use of the internet has set a new precedent for how campaigns will be shaped and run (for more details and an interesting read go to the Atlantic Monthly article The Amazing Money Machine by Joshua Green). What I find most exciting about Obama’s internet strategy is that it’s straightforward, can be replicated and has the potential to set a new standard for how other communities of people, movements, industries and institutions can expand their reach like never before.
The internet has given Obama cheap, quick, easy access to large numbers of people and he, in turn, provides those same people the necessary organizing tools to access and engage the masses of people at their fingertips, multiplying their contributions and empowering his constituents to own and elevate his campaign. In contrast with traditional and now-outdated campaigns that cater to and are mostly funded by the select wealthy few, Obama offers a place of influence to anyone willing to donate any amount of money and, most importantly, their time to spread the campaign’s message and bring their network of people on board. The result: an energized 50-state campaign that is breaking fundraising records and activating an astounding partnership with the general public. In doing so, he has showcased the potency of an engaging core message mixed with the basic tenets of community organizing and the effective use of a website, email and online social networks. Ultimately, Obama has created a catalyst for previously small, disenfranchised factions to become a powerful critical mass, putting the internet and its’ potential to not just level, but utterly change the playing field in high relief.
So, what exactly can and will the non-profit arts sector do with this information? The arts are also mostly funded by a select wealthy few and have struggled to energize and engage the general public. According to a recent New York Times article, census statistics culled by the National Endowment for the Arts reveal that, “More Americans identify their primary occupation as artist than as lawyer, doctor, police officer or farm worker…nearly two million Americans said their primary employment was in jobs the census defines as artists’ occupations…” Strikingly, though not surprisingly, there’s no talk in this article from NEA Chair Dana Gioia about efforts at the national level to mobilize this mass of artists.
And, let’s not wait.
Can we use Obama’s internet strategy to organize the arts community, raise money, build audience and activate people’s interest, awareness and commitment to the arts? How are we already using Obama’s strategies? And, like Obama, don’t keep your aspirations, successes and challenges to yourself, please share.
Doug Fox (June 30th, 2008 at 4:20 pm)
David,
I’ve been thinking about many of the same issues.
Here are links to two posts I wrote recently:
- Implementing a Grassroots Strategy for the Performing Arts
- A Grassroots Internet Strategy Needed for the Performing Arts
I look forward to hearing what others think about Internet-focused approaches to building audiences and promoting the performing arts.
sarita (July 2nd, 2008 at 12:56 am)
this is a great article. i wonder if we as artist’s are truly willing to share fan bases and support one another. will the already small world feel too small if we realize that we aren’t completely original, or will we feel supported by the community and hopefully comaraderie?
another thought; as a dancer also involved in the music business, i’m constantly dismayed and delighted at the lack of infrastructure in the dance world. it’s an amazing thing, as it forces us to have dialogue such as this, but it is a specific and difficult challenge today.
thoughts?
Renate Boué (July 2nd, 2008 at 11:41 am)
David, it’s a challenge to read your article, simply because of background color (light blue) and script (white). I guess we are not up to the latest invention of being able to change some background color, which is ADA compatible.
Looking forward to reading the important article,
Thanks,
Renate
Megan Sprenger (July 2nd, 2008 at 2:57 pm)
Renate - If the website displays a background color that is difficult to read, click the refresh button on your browser and the background color will change.
Please let me know if you continue to have trouble reading our blog.
Thank you!
Megan
Sergei Diaghilev (July 8th, 2008 at 9:14 am)
Fan bases are visible to all through social networking sites, like facebook, which seems to be the choice of the dance community, and not just in New York City. The problem is not sharing these already captive audiences, but, like the Senator from Illinois, growing that audience by creating a strong brand. (we still know very little of this product, but many people are buying it…)
True, the institutions are failing to provide the structures needed, as they struggle with their own but the artists, as always, are creating them for themselves.
Anne Lewis (July 8th, 2008 at 11:06 am)
I’m not sure if the dance community is effectively using Facebook. Yes we are becoming friends etc. but people are not then taking action. They are not going to see the person’s work who they just met on Facebook, nor are they donating to organizations they have found on Facebook. This is where I believe David is right. We have to learn from the Obama campaign and perhaps specifically about messaging. People are not activated by Obama just because he is online, it is because of what he is saying online and the consistency in which he is doing so.
Fernando Maneca (August 14th, 2008 at 9:29 am)
I came to this blog a bit late … but better late than never … so here goes:
Right from the beginning of his campaign, Obama had a lot of attention directed toward him. He’s a charismatic speaker with a populist message. What’s not to love?
With that attention, he, his campaign team and his supporters constantly directed (direct) people to the site.
The site (and campaign) is successful because it offers its visitors something larger than the candidate … visitors get a sense of community and empowerment … he offers visitors an actionable plan that takes them (us) to a brighter future … an actionable plan that we can implement ourselves … he gives us ownership of our country’s future.
AND THEN, there is the ever-present “DONATE NOW” button.
As I see it there are at least three things we can learn from Obama’s campaign:
1. Create a community where we are all welcome.
2. Share actionable plans that elevate us all.
3. The ever-present “donate now” button.
What does this mean to us, the dance community? I’ll go backwards …
3. The “donate now” button: We all have one, we’ve all clicked on it. We know this button well … enough said.
2. Sharing action plans: I think that as a community, we do this more than most other “industries.” But, not as much as some. AND as the proverbial pie shrinks, sharing starts to look more like a luxury than a necessity.
1. Create a community: This is a tricky one. Largely because we are a small community with less than six degrees of separation between any two of us. But we don’t do nearly enough to invite “outsiders” into our community.
SOLUTIONS?
One solution is to form a collective lobbying entity who advocates on OUR behalf to the world at large, and disseminates both funds and actionable plans to the community.
This entity could be modeled after any number of lobbying groups, such as:
– the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
“Beef, it’s what’s for dinner”
– the National Oilheat Research Association
“You uncle’s jokes at Thanksgiving: 3% clean.
Today’s Oilheat: 99.9% clean”
– California Milk Processor Board
“Got Milk?”
List goes on and on. The point is, that their mission is to support the industry at large and their members in particular.
We need an organization that can identify potential audiences and create a campaign that consistently sends them the message: GO SEE DANCE. Not a particular dance concert, but dance in general.
This organization then shares its lists and knowledge of the constituencies within these lists with its members, so that the members can each send their own campaigns: COME SEE MY DANCE.
This organization would then facilitate the interaction between these new audience members and the artists by educating both groups and acting as translators.
This is not a new idea. All of this has been done before and is being done now by some amazing people and organizations. Just not as a whole comprehensive approach… NOT in the same manner as the Obama campaign.
The Obama campaign focuses all the diverse ideologies and perspectives that make-up the Democratic Party and the progressive movement through one lens which is best summarized by the quote on his website banner: “I’m asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change in Washington … I’m asking you to believe in yours.”
What will OUR website say?