Virtual Political Presence, Marlo Kline

Just a snipet of the write up on the Obama event hosted back on SoHo in March — …………….Better late than never right?

Virtual Political Presence, Marlo Kline

On Saturday, March 31 at 1:00 PM SLT, Democratic presidential candidate, Barack Obama increased his “virtual” presence with a highly attended simulcast on Second Life’s SoHo Island. The event, brain child of Forefront Media, generated a great deal of public interest and political fervor. The international virtual platform provided, via simulcast, a dynamic in-world opportunity for all SL citizens to congregate and experience the real life event that took place in a small, rural Iowa community.

Mr. Obama’s campaign themes, despite the intended real life audience, were readily transferable to many of the political and sociological concerns that exist within Second Life. While the contingency that would argue against the overlap of real life and Second Life was present – it was apparent that their concern was less with the content of the message and more with the style of shoes worn by Obama Oh, the candidate’s avatar. Although the sharp contrast of supporter and critic were evident, the differences between the two camps did not appear detract from the overall event. In fact, the only distractions seemed to be those of a technical nature on real life end, for which the hosting management and technical team took measures to compensate.

Organizers of the simulcast, Forefront Media (which operates SoHo Island and other properties within Second Life) felt that SoHo’s environment was perfect for a political event of this nature. In a statement issued by one of Forefront Media’s Managing Directors, MB Darrow went on to elaborate, “SoHo is a place where people can be creative and expressive. It is not a political environment but rather a perfect platform for free expression. It is truly a non-biased place for someone such as Obama to present ideas that can be considered without preconceived notion.”

While, Mr. Obama himself never directly addressed the citizens of SecondLife, his Avatar, Obama Oh, fascinated the denizens of supporters, critics and curious spectators alike. The venue, SoHo’s Main Stage, provided the appropriate backdrop for the charismatic candidate, while the “virtual” international platform of Second Life, via simulcast, provided an in-world opportunity for all SL citizens to congregate and experience the RL event. Of the 5000 community “Kick-Offs” planned by the Obama movement throughout the United States, this particular meeting with an Iowa family, overall was considered by many to be a success.