First, I'm a Conservative. Second, I interact daily with other Conservatives online and have done so for several years. Most of my interaction with other Conservatives is on Facebook, then YouTube, then Twitter, then in various comment sections all over the internet where most of the interaction is with liberals. I'm a 21-year+ listener of Rush Limbaugh. I'm an 11-year+ listener of Glenn Beck. I've been "politically active" online since 1998. I post things from time-to-time on Facebook with the sole intent of gauging what people's reactions will be. One might say that I "study" the behavior and tendencies of the Conservatives with which I interact. To me, it is kind of a game. A game I want Conservatives to win. So far, I see little winning anywhere online by Conservatives and I'm finally going to address it here.
If you're one of the people who wonder how it is that Obama is still doing so well in the polls, it's because you are not sharing the information that you have with those who only get their information from the mainstream media which exists solely to kiss his ass and get him re-elected. The media got Obama elected the first time. Are you willing to let them do it again? Unless more of you Conservatives are willing to venture outside of your online safety and comfort zones, that could very well happen.
Several months ago while listening online to "Grizzly Fest", a pro-Sarah Palin event sponsored by Conservatives 4 Palin (C4P), I was able to get a question through to a discussion panel that was a part of the event. I asked what could be done to improve online participation by Conservatives. I was shocked at the answer I received. I don't remember the name of the person who answered my question, but it was one of the women on this list that answered it (it was not Jedidiah Bila or Tammy Bruce). Whoever it was that replied to my question thought that Conservatives "had a handle on the internet" and that "no more work was needed in that area". Others on that panel agreed with her. She encouraged people to get out into their local communities and participate more with others face-to-face to be able to have more of an effect in their local political races. While the latter part of the answer my question received makes a great amount of sense and is absolutely necessary, in my several years worth of observation of the activities of Conservatives on the internet, the first part of her answer couldn't have been more WRONG. Conservatives need to take great strides before they are even able to begin to reach for the "handle on the internet". Conservatives sparingly share, like, re-post, or comment on the internet in comparison to the level of participation from liberals.
I've been active on YouTube since shortly after it was founded in 2005. I've been active on Facebook for about 4 years. I use Twitter sparingly (as you'll see here, the 140-character limit on Twitter just isn't my thing). I comment fairly regularly in various places all over the internet. Oh, and I've had this blog for more than a year.
Now, maybe it's because the videos and/or articles that I create SUCK which explains why they just aren't shared more by the hundreds of Conservatives I interact with daily via YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter? That certainly could be the case. However, I've had people tell me that SOME of what I put out there on YouTube or on this blog is "great" or "well done"; "another great job", they'll say. But, do they share? Some of you "get it" and you do share, and I appreciate those of you who do. However, I KNOW that the vast majority of you do NOT. This is why I have that same, repetitive tag line at the end of every one of my blog posts that reads:
Because the left owns the media in this country, I blog. If you don’t share these posts, who else will see them?
Do I expect you to share everything I post? Certainly not! Do I hope that you'd share some of what I post on my blog or on YouTube? Absolutely, especially if you somewhat agree with what I post. Why else would I do it? Just so you and I can be the only ones who read or watch it? No offense, but what's the point in that? I write a post and only you read it? I make a video and only you watch it? That's it. The end. Unless you share it, it ends with your reading/viewing of it. If it's something that you find no value in, or don't agree with, I understand why you wouldn't share it. But, if it's something you think others may not know and may be interested in knowing, please share it! Post the links in relevant comment sections all over the internet, not just on Facebook. Branch out. Get connected. Network.
There must be some value in some of what I put out there. I've had a video posted on Drudge (that was on my original, old, terminated-by-Google YouTube account). I've had a video posted by Breitbart (that was also on my original YouTube account). And, one of my blog posts was quoted on The Blaze. There have been various other blog posts that I've written or videos that I've made that have made the rounds on smaller, lesser-known blogs and news sites as well.
But, this has far less to do with what I post on my blog or on YouTube than it does with everything I see posted all over the internet. I can only use my videos and my blog posts as a gauge of how people react to what I create. I use the reactions and interactions on other people's blog posts, videos, comment sections, and Facebook posts to gauge how people react to everything else that is out there. What I see on a daily basis is that Conservatives, for the most part, just don't get it. You're not sharing. You're not "liking" on YouTube, Facebook, or in comment sections everywhere. You're not commenting everywhere. You're not re-posting on Facebook and Twitter and sharing YouTube links. All of this is reflected in the statistics for videos, in the statistics on my blog, in the number of "Likes" a video or a Facebook post or page receives on Facebook, and in the "likes" comments receive in various comment sections everywhere. When comparing the NUMBERS of "likes" on what could be considered "mainstream" fanpages on Facebook, for example, nearly everything put out by liberals far outnumbers what is put out by Conservatives. If this is a "center-right" country, why is there much more online participation from those on the left? Of course there are exceptions - I'm not talking about the exceptions. I'm talking about what is the "norm". Conservatives normally lose on a daily basis online. I see it everyday. I pay attention to view counts of videos and to how many "shares" a post receives on Facebook and to various other statistics that show where online traffic is generated.
It's not only the mainstream media that the left owns. They also RULE the internet. They RULE YouTube. They RULE Facebook. Twitter may be the only place that they don't completely RULE...but, I have doubts about that as well. The blogoshpere? Owned by the left.
Liberals don't have to be coached to share things online. They just do it.
They don't ask if they can re-post something. They just do it.
They don't have to be asked to "Like" a Facebook page. They just do it. And, they obviously share them, too...without being asked or coached.
They don't have to be encouraged or reminded to subscribe properly (click to be notified of new uploads via email), like, and comment on YouTube. They just do it.
Some of this is most likely attributable to the age differences between many Conservatives and college-aged liberals who are online all of their waking hours. Since that is most likely the case, doesn't it make more sense for Conservatives to begin spending their online time in a more constructive and efficient manner? You can either be a part of the problem or be a part of the solution. It's up to you.
Those of you that ask if you can re-post or share things you see posted online, I'm going to tell you something: STOP ASKING!!! JUST DO IT!!! It's not a "courtesy" to ask someone if you can share what they've spent hours creating. It's actually kind of offensive because, after all, the point of their creating it in the first place is so that the information will be available to others! No one spends hours creating something (for free), be it a blog post, a YouTube video, or even just a rant on Facebook, with the hopes that NO ONE else will see it. As a video maker, I don't spend hours making videos...for FREE...for myself to watch over and over. I make them so that others will watch them and hopefully find some value in them and SHARE them with others!! Same goes for my blog posts. I don't spend hours typing and re-reading, and proofreading, and checking grammar and punctuation...for FREE...so that I can read what I wrote. (Yes, believe it or not, I do check grammar and punctuation - it may not always be correct but, at least I'm TRYING. I'm putting my sub-standard grammar and punctuation skills out there for judgement and condemnation. What are YOU doing?)
Within the conservative community it's as if some of you think that you're stealing something if you re-post a link. Get over it. You're not! You're HELPING by re-posting links. If something that you want to share has a LINK, re-post the damn thing for others to see...and, hopefully they'll re-post it for others to see...and, hopefully they'll re-post it for others to see. See how this whole "social networking" thing works?
Those of you who say you don't know how to share links, stop using that as an excuse. If you can turn your computer ON, you can share a link. Google how to do it if you don't know how. (If you don't know and can't figure out what "Google it" means, you may want to consider getting off the internet altogether.)
Another thing, those of you that only read the headlines of articles, blog posts, or videos I post, I can almost always tell that you didn't bother to read or watch what I posted by the comments you make. Why would you embarrass yourself by commenting on something that you've not even taken 60-seconds to read? Is it really that difficult to click on a link and read a story that someone took time out of their day to write...for free? Is it too difficult to watch a 3-minute YouTube video that most likely took the video maker several hours to make...for NO pay?
You, my conservative brothers and sisters say you're sick of the liberal media, yet you barely bother to support conservative bloggers who are at least willing to put themselves out there. What are YOU doing, besides making your quick Facebook comments based on the title of an article or video that you didn't even take the time to read or watch?
I may be committing blogger suicide by writing this post, but at this point I really don't give a damn anymore. The level of participation by Conservatives is pathetic. There is no point in continuing to bust my ass for nothing if you all don't participate more anyway. The number of people who have to agree with 100% of what someone says in order to continue supporting them is also growing and I, for one, am completely fed-up with it. I only agree with about 70-80% of what MOST people I follow say. This having to agree with EVERYTHING someone says is a new and very disturbing trend among Conservatives.
Que sera, sera.
(Most of you won't even bother to click on that link...which also makes me wonder why I even bother putting any supporting info in any of my blog posts.)
I'm going to tell you what finally prompted me to write this blog post (I've been mulling writing this very post for months now): Yesterday, a video maker named Hugh Atkin uploaded a video to YouTube entitled "U Didn't Build That by MC 'Bama". He obviously spent a TON of time making that video, probably somewhere around 100 hours and, most likely, for FREE. That 3-minute and 45-second video has been on YouTube for a little over 24 hours and only has 5,676 views as of this moment. (The view count for popular YouTube videos is only updated every few hours. There is no "YouTube conspiracy" for keeping the view count down on conservative videos, so don't even go there.) The editing is brilliant. The concept is brilliant. It makes Obama look like a total ass, which I would think most of the Conservatives I know would greatly enjoy seeing. But, the view count is paltry. That video should have 10 times more views than it does by now. And, if Conservatives truly ruled the internet, it would. Conservatives DON'T rule the internet. We don't even come CLOSE!
One video, ANY video, put out by the Obama campaign gets 5,000 views within hours of it being uploaded to YouTube. (They have over 225,000 subscribers, too.) How many subscribers does the Mitt Romney campaign channel have on YouTube? 18,843. Get with the program, Conservatives. Social networking requires participation on more levels than just one. I know that you know that having more information is a good thing. Sharing that information with others is just as important as you reading or watching it for yourself.
A little financial support for those who do all the work to provide that information might be something that some of you could consider, as well. If you have less money than I do, you're homeless. If you're homeless and on the internet, God Bless America!
Another reason I'm writing this post is this: On September 3rd I started a YouTube channel that mirrors the YouTube channel of the Obama campaign. I'm uploading all the videos to this new channel that the Obama campaign uploads to theirs...except for the LONG ones, they take too long to upload. It takes about 15-minutes just to upload their short, 3-minute videos and sometimes they upload 5 or 6 of those in one day! I have to download, convert, and THEN upload each of them. Have to? No, I don't "have to", I do it to offer people a chance to comment freely on all of the videos that the Obama campaign puts out there. You can't post comments on the Obama campaign channel if you disagree with their videos. They moderate ALL of their comments and only the ones that suck-up to or support the president get approved and appear in the comment section under all of their videos.
I have posted about this new YouTube channel that I began (BarackObamadotcomII) at least 50 times on Facebook and on YouTube. Now, either the Conservatives that are seeing my posts don't understand the purpose of the new YouTube channel OR they just don't care about having the President of the United States squash their freedom of speech. People, however, sure seem to be "up in arms" about that very subject right now. (Will anyone even notice that ALL of those are DIFFERENT links? Doubtful.)
Here I am, offering people an opportunity to fight back against those that want to quash free speech and so far only ELEVEN people have subscribed to this new YouTube channel over the past TWO WEEKS!!! ELEVEN. That's embarrassing! More have commented on a few of the videos but if you don't SUBSCRIBE (and click the box to be notified of new uploads via email) you are wasting your time...and so am I...because with every single video I post on YouTube I'll have to make another post on Facebook or Twitter to REMIND YOU to come comment on the new videos! If you'd just SUBSCRIBE and click on the box to be notified of new uploads via email, I wouldn't have to remind you. It is enough to make me want to pull my hair out that people can't seem to understand this concept. The liberals are beginning to subscribe and comment, however. I suppose this will just be another case of the liberals winning the online battle.
Maybe people don't know how to use YouTube? Maybe too many Conservatives are "scared" of YouTube (that whole "Google" thing)? Get over it. YouTube is a viable social networking site and it's not going away. You hear YouTube mentioned on the news at a rate of 100-1 over any other online video site.
Conservatives, either get with the program or stop pretending that your online activity makes any difference whatsoever. Participate. Comment. Like. Share. Re-post. Email. And, do it without asking if you may. Post things in places where a different audience will see it. Venture out of your comfy Facebook groups from time-to-time and plant your flag in another place online, as well. Those of you who claim to have guts, prove it. Put yourselves out there. Put your opinion out there. Don't act like a whiny liberal while you're doing it. Spell properly and represent Conservatism appropriately.
After being a part of a Facebook group that attempted to "organize" Conservatives into action for 8 months, I've learned that trying to herd Conservatives is like trying to herd cats...it ain't happening. I realize that most of what I've written here will not be read, will not be shared, may not be comprehended or understood, and parts of it may not be received warmly. Does that stop me? Nope. Good luck with whatever is that you're doing. How close will this election be?
Oh, and for the love of all that is good, please WATCH, SHARE, LIKE &/or COMMENT on Hugh Atkin's video below.....and, please share this blog post...whether you agree with ALL of it or not! Thank you!
Want to connect?
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