Layalina Productions, Inc. | The Layalina Review: "New Media at Work in Lebanese Elections"

The Layalina Review

VOL. V NO. 13, June 05-June 18, 2009

New Media at Work in Lebanese Elections

Following the victory of the American-backed March 14 coalition in the Lebanese Parliamentary elections on June 7th, political analysts are looking towards the Obama Administration as a major player in swaying voters away from the Syria-Iranian aligned March 8 coalition, according to the New York Times.

The March 14 coalition victory is attributed, in part, to Obama’s campaign of outreach to the Arab and Muslim world, completely overturning the predicted victory of the Hezbollah-led party. For the first time in the Middle East, being aligned with the United States did not hurt a political coalition, perhaps beginning a new trend in the region.

Osama Safa, director of the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies, told the New York Times, “Lebanon is a telling case… It is no longer relevant for the extremists to use the anti-American card. It does look like the US is moving on to something new.”

While President Obama strove to send a conciliatory message to the Middle East in his speech to Cairo, some analysts similarly have been accrediting some stake in the victory to Vice President Joe Biden. Though his actions in Beirut were derided at first, it is now said that his speech contributed in solidifying the choice of the essential swing Christian voters.

Robert Satloff, for the Middle East Strategy at Harvard, suggests that Biden’s visit to Lebanon was his way of playing hardball with the Lebanese voters by reminding them that Washington would be reviewing financial assistance to, and their relations with the nation depending on the outcome of the election. Christian voters “cast their ballots in droves for candidates opposed to the Hezbollah-backed alliance and, in so doing, appear to have turned the tide of the election.”

Whether it was Obama’s speech of reconciliation that defused anti-American sentiment in the region or Biden’s reminder of what the country might lose by voting for radicals and extremists, there is no question that new forms of social media have changed the political landscape of the 2009 elections.

According to OnOffBeirut, there was a scarce online presence of the candidates in the Parliamentary elections of 2005. That was not the case this time around. As politicians have acknowledged the importance of new media in reaching out to voters, more have registered their own domain names, created websites and kept up with their own Facebook pages, each with a full biography of the candidate and explanation of their political platform.

Using social media to keep in touch with followers living both within the borders of the country as well as abroad, candidates are able to reach out to voters in a way that Lebanon has never seen before. By announcing events, TV appearances and promotional festivals, supporters have been able to stay more informed. Politicians, though less likely to engage in communication through spam databases, used text messaging to distribute information for a bigger outreach.

As younger voters got involved in the election, they were able to create fan pages for candidates, becoming an un-official outlet for support. Through numerous means, social media allowed users to take their own initiatives and communicate with one another about politics.

The use of new media complemented the existing campaigns of the candidates, allowing for a greater outreach and a renewed interest in politics for a younger generation. Whatever the reason, be it Obama’s speech in Cairo, Biden’s visit to Lebanon, or simply the popularity of Facebook fan pages, the victory of the American-backed party shows that this new trend has the potential to emerge in favor of change in Middle Eastern politics.

By proving that it is no longer a disadvantage to align with the US, Lebanon could set the tone for improved public diplomacy between America and the Arab world.

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