Social media use by Barack Obama

Obama in blue suit standing at a podium in front of an audience as a man in a light grey suit looks on.
Barack Obama in the first presidential Twitter town hall meeting with service creator and moderator Jack Dorsey looking on

Barack Obama won the 2008 United States presidential election on November 4, 2008. During his campaign, he became the first presidential candidate of a major party to utilize social networking sites (such as podcasting, Twitter, Myspace, Facebook, and YouTube) to expand and engage his audience of supporters and donors.[1]

Obama's adoption of social media for political campaigning has been compared to Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy's adoption of the radio and television media for communication with the American public. For this reason, Obama has been dubbed by some as "the first social media president."[2]

In his 2008 presidential campaign, Obama had more friends on Facebook and Myspace and more followers on Twitter than his opponent John McCain.[3]

  1. ^ Carr, David (November 9, 2008). "How Obama Tapped Into Social Networks' Power". The New York Times.
  2. ^ Bogost, Ian (January 6, 2017). "Obama Was Too Good at Social Media". The Atlantic. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  3. ^ Brandon, John (August 19, 2008). "Barack Obama wins Web 2.0 race". Archived from the original on July 10, 2012. Retrieved August 3, 2012.