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2006 ITV Class Links
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JohnKerryMadoka Higuchi Show: JohneKerry.com According to the website, JohnKerry.com is an official campaign site of a senator, John Kerry, who was a presidential candidate of the Democratic Party in 2004. The website has sections about his stand on issues, biography, speeches, press releases, and supporters. This episode, “Speech at the South Carolina Education Association,” shows his speech about the midterm election that established Democratic majorities in the House and the Senate. He also mentioned the importance of education and a law called No Child Left Behind. 2. Interesting? Not many voters have a chance to listen to John Kerry’s whole speech unless they are at the speech event. Even if some T.V. news were to show his speech, it usually would be a small part of it. So for those voters who are interested in his stand on a particular issue or in general, this video might be a good one. 3. Original? Lately, it is not unusual for politicians to have videos on their websites. 4. Quality The video shows John Kerry making a speech without editing for 27 minutes and 9 seconds. The video quality is not very clear, and audio is not crisp because it is not a direct microphone. I guess a cameraman videotaped him from the backmost row of seats without a camera tripod. Since this site does not have a transcript of this speech, it is hard for visitors to understand what he is saying with this poor quality audio. 5. Taking advantage of the medium? Websites allow politicians to communicate with a mass of voters directly without involving T.V. programs or newspapers. Through the Internet, politicians can not only express their opinions but also ask for volunteers and funds. Thanks to this video Kerry can express his opinion to voters with his voice and facial expression, but in the video section there is no link for applying for volunteers or offering a fund. Even if visitors are interested in being a volunteer or making a donation for his political activities after watching this video, they need to move to a “contribute” section for it. The design of this video page is not efficient to get more volunteers and funds. Each page should be more integrated. 6. Suggestions These are the four suggestions to this website, JohnKerry.com. First, they should make a video with a direct microphone and a tripod; it does not require exceptional skill. Second, they should split this long speech into 4 or 5. Not many people like to sit in front of a computer for 30 minutes just to watch a video. It would be nice if each video segment were about one issue. Third, they should post a transcript of his speech. It could allow visitors to understand his idea quickly, and it would be also good for those who have a hearing problem. Finally, they should have a “contribute” link close to the video screen to get more volunteers and funds. |