WeeWorld Users Get Political as Presidential Election Goes Viral

By WeeWorld

WeeWorld, a popular social game and virtual world for teens, became a hot spot for young voters and those not of age to vote throughout the election process based on WeeWorld users' demand for their own political forum. A more politically focused and cause-oriented generation, WeeWorld users embraced the use of the virtual world for political activity, conversation, debate and celebration surrounding the presidential campaign and inauguration.

Presidential nominees welcomed a new generation of technologies as a portal to young voters, and WeeWorld provided a community to foster such dialog. While election/ inauguration coverage was "tweeted" and live streamed, it was also simulated in virtual worlds - reaching the non-voting audience like never before. WeeWorld users watched election coverage live with other WeeMees from around the globe, attended a virtual inaugural ball, participated in blogs/forums, and adorned their avatars with partisan gear, political pickets and other swag to show their spirit. A majority of the 30 million WeeMees participated and some even planned movements and celebrations on their own.

WeeWorld users were actively engaged in the political movement within the community from the onset of the election process and used their WeeMees, already a tool for self expression, to express their views about the presidential election.

Users invited avatars of the Presidential nominees Barack Obama, Hilary Clinton and John McCain into "rooms" within the WeeWorld community - sparking conversation and encouraging meetings with like-minded WeeMees. The support WeeMees gave to each political candidate closely reflected the election's outcome, with 45.6% of WeeMees endorsing Barack Obama.

According to Time magazine, the number of young voters involved in the primaries of the last election was up 135% over 2004. This involvement can be attributed in part to communities like WeeWorld that embraced and encouraged youth political dialogue. The initiative garnered high-level media coverage that showcased WeeWorld as a forward-looking community promoting teen involvement in the political sphere.

October 2008-Present

Overall Rating: (61 votes)

Share this entry:

---

 

Reviews