Election Shocker: People View Long Obama Speeches Online

Well, looking at the numbers, people are turning to substantive speech in long-form online.

Jon Stewart captured the gist: people are shocked that Obama's treating us like adults.

Micah Sifry and Andrew Rasiej capture the issues in an article in Politico:

So far, Obama's videos have been viewed more than 33 million times on YouTube -- and that's not counting partial views, since YouTube only reports a full viewing as a "view." His campaign has uploaded more than 800 video clips, and adds several more a day.

If you just look at his 10-most viewed videos, here are some astonishing facts:

• * The average number of views for these top 10 is currently more than 1.1 million (nearly double the average from a month ago!)
  
• * The average length of these ten videos is 13.3 minutes.
  
• * There have been nearly 3.9 million views of the longest of Obama's most popular videos, his "A More Perfect Union" speech on race in America.

In an age of sound bites, that's pretty impressive; in particular, his speech on race is maybe genuinely historic.

The Times is talking about the youth aspect in this regards.

Big things, they're happening.

Follow Craig Newmark on Twitter: www.twitter.com/craignewmark

Comments

[NWReader]

12:18 PM on 03/29/2008

I wonder if the electorate would have paid more attention years ago, if we had had YouTube to watch all along. Seems to me that more people are taking advantage of the technology to fit into *their* lives, rather than accepting what the talking heads have to say - because now we CAN. How would the web have impacted the Reagan/Carter campaign? Just thinking out loud...

[efranklin]

10:52 PM on 03/27/2008

So much for talk being cheap. Thus is the fundamental flaw in Clinton's "solutions not speeches" drone. Speeches, when done right, can make way for solutions. Speeches gain attention, which begets contemplation, which begets action, which begets change.

[GoodwithWood]

11:10 PM on 03/27/2008

I'll second the HuffPo honor

[LeftRight]

07:27 AM on 03/28/2008

I'll third the HuffPo honor!

[GoodwithWood]

10:46 PM on 03/27/2008

A spark of hope.

[editrix66]

05:49 PM on 03/27/2008

I listen to the speeches on Youtube, and it is so nice not to have them interrupted by the newscasters.

[wm1066]

01:23 PM on 03/27/2008

Both Barack and his wife are good public speakers. I have found myself watching thier speeches on C-span and I end up watching the whole speech. Something I had not done with anybody else.
Hillary doesn't have that ability to inspire, and McCain is too old to have a long speech, just sound bytes.

[Barbara914]

12:31 PM on 03/27/2008

Folks like me realize that TV pundits spinning the news and throwing in a couple of sound bites don't tell the story. We'd rather take the time to evaluate the candidate's message for ourselves. I bet cable news ratings are falling as more of us take to the net.

[LeftRight]

04:55 PM on 03/27/2008

One could hope!

[Gabrielle]

09:44 AM on 03/27/2008

HOORAH FOT THE INTERNET...HOORAH FOR YOUTUBE

OBAMA08

[SCG]

08:45 AM on 03/27/2008

His support will continue to grow as more have the chance to hear him, time isn't Hillary's or McCain's friend.

[DukeFan]

08:11 AM on 03/27/2008

I am not surprised at all! I think Obama is a brilliant speaker and speaks from his heart! Go Obama!

[LeftRight]

07:09 AM on 03/27/2008

Damn, that's just impressive! I still remember the '04 election when I was talking to a coworker who voted for bush, because he "read online that Kerry will make gay marriage legal, and take out 'Under God' from the Pledge of Alliegance." Scared the hell out of me then!

Thank you to all the people who truly CARE about this election, no matter who you support!

[Yonathan]

03:03 AM on 03/27/2008

Just a testament to the fact that people are captivated by Barack's politics. I dont think youll see anything like this with Senator Clinton, John Mccain, or really just about anybody in modern politics.

[paragrafH]

02:41 AM on 03/27/2008

The pundits "pundit" and the bloggers blog. Blah, blah, blah. We're dead in the water. We're not.

But you know what? I think the electorate, this YouTube watching electorate in the background, is going to surprise everybody. They're paying attention, unlike any other election year EVER!

Clinton and McCain might not matter -- either of them!

Oh, happy day!