Cisco Systems recently released the results of a "Visual Networking Index" study which it commissioned from Complete and which was designed to assess the influence of broadband video and other social media applications on Americans' political engagement. The study, which purports to show that "visual networking" is playing an increasingly important role as a source of news and information on US presidential campaigns, is the first installment of a service called "Cisco Visual Networking Index Pulse" that the company says will provide quantative views of network-based consumer behavior via direct data collection.
The study surveyed around 1,800 registered voters in September, who self-identified as Democrats, Republicans, independents or undecideds. Among its findings:
- Traffic to popular broadband video sites increased fivefold between 2004 and 2008.
- The Internet was identified by 62% of respondents as a regularly used source for 2008 presidential election information and coverage, being surpassed only by television (82%).
- Around 30% of registered voters reported using broadband video to follow 2008 presidential election coverage; and 75% of these broadband video users felt watching video online enabled them to follow presidential election news and events more closely.
- Democrats are more likely to use traditional news sites and social networking sites to find video content, while Republicans are more likely to use search engines to do so.
- Broadband video users were more engaged in the 2008 presidential election campaign than non-users: 62% of broadband video users, vs. 37% of non-users, followed the presidential election closely; and 68% of broadband video users, as opposed to 47% of non-users, followed the Democratic and Republican National Conventions.
Additional results from the survey can be found at www.cisco.com/go/vni. "Visual networking is clearly playing a significant role in how American voters get political information and express their views," Ken Wirt, Cisco's VP of consumer marketing, said in a prepared statement. "The 2008 election has rightfully captured the attention of the United States, and the Internet serves as a very effective tool in helping people investigate issues, make informed choices and share their opinions."
