Democrats mobilize tech volunteers for convention - CNET

Kelli Klein, the Democratic National Convention Committee's digital director, is organizing the army of volunteers. One of three paid staffers, Klein is responsible for overseeing the DNCC's website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat accounts are updated. She also oversees the DNCC's live video streams.

Because the demands are great and the stakes are high, Klein sought volunteers with digital or campaign-organizing experience.

"I've put a lot of trust in these people," she said.

For nearly 40 years, political conventions have been shows for mass media. Newspapers sent correspondents, radio broadcast speeches and television news captured the pomp. That means the message voters get is filtered by news organizations.

The inteet changes that dynamic. Now, the parties and candidates speak directly to voters. Campaigns craft their messages for email, websites and now social media. Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, have become news outlets for many younger voters.

"The power of social networking for campaigns is in how they target voters," said Jennifer Stromer-Galley, a Syracuse University professor, who researches social media. Campaigns use Facebook and other social media sites to collect information on voters and then target them with messages about donating to the campaign or getting out the vote, she said.

Viraj Patel, 29, is a Philly resident with experience running Facebook, Twitter and Instagram feeds for civic organizations, including the Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership and Philadelphia South Asian Collective.

Now, she's selecting photos for the DNC's Twitter account and helping draft tweets to promote Studio 2016, a DNC pre-show that streams before the prime-time speakers. Among the show's stars: comedian Chelsea Handler and Inteet celebrity Awesomely Luvvie. She's also promoting the "Digital Balcony" and "Instagram Suite," where convention speakers tweet and have portraits taken.

Sitting in the DNC's digital war room across from the convention's souvenir shop, Patel stares at her iPhone 5S as Bill Clinton finishes his speech on Tuesday. She selects photos sent to her from other volunteers and posts tweets to the DNCC's Twitter account. The operation is fast-paced and collaborative, as the team checks the language of the tweets, picture quality of the photos, and fact-checks the content.

"It's been equal amounts of overwhelming and exciting," says Patel, who doesn't get home until 2 a.m. each night, and then puts in a full day as a college administrator. "I'm still processing everything I'm experiencing."

Not all the volunteers on the digital team have tech expertise.

Mark Jimenez, a 28-year old public policy graduate student from Califoia, is a "runner," escorting other volunteers and campaign staff to the digital command center. Jimenez, who worked as a campaign organizer for President Barack Obama's 2012 reelection campaign, said the folks who feed volunteers are often the most cherished.

"The best volunteers are the ones you don't have to tell what to do," Jimenez said. "They just notice what needs to be done and they do it."

For Mahan, who grew up in a conservative Republican family in Florida and converted to the Democrats a decade ago, watching Obama's speech Wednesday was an emotional experience.