In 2008, the Obama campaign was credited as one of the first major political campaigns to successfully leverage a social media strategy as a major element of its communications. Four years later, social media is everywhere in politics, from news coverage to voter outreach - what effect has it had on this election?

As Americans go to the polling booths, our expert panel will reflect on how social media has impacted the voting behaviors of citizens in this presidential election. Social media has been used by voters to variously express support and criticism of candidates, and served as a rumor mill and a platform for ridicule and controversy for the past year. Some news organizations have developed discussion forums and integrated social channels into their coverage, but have those impacted public perception? On the campaign side, the results of this election may demonstrate the value and effectiveness of one candidate’s social media strategy over the other's. Join us as we ask:

•  How was social media used intentionally to affect voters - to persuade them or to get them out to vote? 
• How did events - planned and unplanned - impact public opinion through Facebook and Twitter? 
• Did one side do it better than the other? Were major mistakes made or opportunities missed? Was social media a win for democracy or did it prove to be a negative force in the political process?
• Did the campaigns truly listen and respond to voters in a social way on the Web?

About the Panel

Katie Harbath

Katie Harbath is a Manager for Policy at Facebook, where she focuses on political outreach. Prior to Facebook, Katie was the Chief Digital Strategist at the National Republican Senatorial Committee. She previously led digital strategy in positions at DCI Group, the Rudy Giuliani for President campaign and the Republican National Committee. In 2009, she was named a Rising Star by Campaigns and Elections magazine. Katie holds a BA in journalism and political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Alan Rosenblatt

Alan Rosenblatt is a social media and online advocacy strategist for the Center for American Progress/CAP Action Fund. Alan taught the world’s first internet politics course at George Mason University in 1995. He founded the Internet Advocacy Roundtable in 2005; teaches graduate course on internet politics at Johns Hopkins, Georgetown, and American Universities; blogs at BigThink.com, DrDigipol.Tumblr.com, and occasionally at HuffingtonPost.com, NetrootsFoundation.org, SalsaLabs.com, TechPresident.com, and KStreetCafé.com; serves on E-Democracy.org’s board of directors; and was a 2008 fellow at George Washington University’s Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet; and is a co-founder of TakeActionNews.com and MediaBureau.com. Alan has a Ph.D. in Political Science from American University. Find him on Twitter @DrDigipol and @CAPcongress.

Robin Fray Carey

Robin Fray Carey founded Social Media Today LLC, a media company which brings together many of the world’s best thinkers about business and policy topics, in 2007. Prior to that, she ran her own media consulting company for 16 years, and worked with Time Inc, Newsweek, BusinessWeek and Ziff-Davis. She leads a team that curates web-based content about social media and other topics, speaks frequently about social media and business, and is an advisor to Pivot and Social Week, and to the Society for New Communications Research. She also is a member of the International Rescue Committee’s Board of Overseers and is on the Charlottesville, Virginia local board of the IRC.