Abstract

This article analyzes the role of the new media in the United States' 2008 Presidential election from three points of view: the political behavior of the internet audience, the supply of contents on candidates' websites, and the strategies adopted by the consultants involved in the online campaign. Due to far-sighted investments, a strategy signifi cantly centered on interpersonal communication, and the creation of a hybrid organizational model capable of balancing participation and control, Barack Obama effectively marshaled the new media to mobilize crucial resources and achieve a sizeable competitive advantage "vis-à-vis" his opponents in both the primaries and the general election. Analyzing the factors that contributed to Obama's success helps generating hypotheses about the conditions that can enable or hinder the diffusion of an internet-centered model of political communication.