Posted 1:00 p.m. Nov. 15
By Jamie Meltzer
U-WIRE Washington Bureau
Many people do not believe stamps and envelopes are high-priced items, but they are for political campaigns.
Virginia's soon-to-be Governor Mark Warner spent $568,000 on mailings during his campaign, according to financial disclosures. But less than $100,000 was spent on Internet expenditures, even though 75 percent of all of his financial contributions were gathered online.
The tremendous fund-raising power of the Internet was the topic at a Nov. 9 forum at George Washington University where a team of researchers presented their findings on the prevalence of online fund raising.
Sponsored by the university's Democracy Online Project, it marked the release of the first major study of online contributions to political campaigns. The findings are significant, according to the researchers, because candidates are using the Web as both a communication and fund-raising medium.
"Congress assumed in 1975 that, without spending, political speech would consist merely of standing on a street corner and shouting, one of the few forms of public communication not regulated or reportable under the federal election laws," researchers said in their report.
While online contributions played a large role in the election of Virginia's new governor and to a lesser extent last year's presidential race, researchers pointed to Sept. 11 as an indicator of the Internet's vast fund-raising power.
Since the days after Sept. 11 when a group of Internet executives launched the charitable Web site www.libertyunites.org, more than $100 million has been raised. In the first week, the site took in $57 million.
The co-founder of the site, Tom Kriese, said most of the success is because visitors can contribute to 64 charities in one place.
"It reduced the barrier between decision and action," Kriese told the gathering of researchers and students.
By Jamie Meltzer
U-WIRE Washington Bureau
Many people do not believe stamps and envelopes are high-priced items, but they are for political campaigns.
Virginia's soon-to-be Governor Mark Warner spent $568,000 on mailings during his campaign, according to financial disclosures. But less than $100,000 was spent on Internet expenditures, even though 75 percent of all of his financial contributions were gathered online.
The tremendous fund-raising power of the Internet was the topic at a Nov. 9 forum at George Washington University where a team of researchers presented their findings on the prevalence of online fund raising.
Sponsored by the university's Democracy Online Project, it marked the release of the first major study of online contributions to political campaigns. The findings are significant, according to the researchers, because candidates are using the Web as both a communication and fund-raising medium.
"Congress assumed in 1975 that, without spending, political speech would consist merely of standing on a street corner and shouting, one of the few forms of public communication not regulated or reportable under the federal election laws," researchers said in their report.
While online contributions played a large role in the election of Virginia's new governor and to a lesser extent last year's presidential race, researchers pointed to Sept. 11 as an indicator of the Internet's vast fund-raising power.
Since the days after Sept. 11 when a group of Internet executives launched the charitable Web site www.libertyunites.org, more than $100 million has been raised. In the first week, the site took in $57 million.
The co-founder of the site, Tom Kriese, said most of the success is because visitors can contribute to 64 charities in one place.
"It reduced the barrier between decision and action," Kriese told the gathering of researchers and students.
