Differing Uses of YouTube During the 2008 U.S. Presidential Primary Election

In this uses and effects study, we explored YouTube use during the 2008 U.S. presidential primaries. Survey results suggested that traditional news sources (i.e., network television) were the source of content most often accessed on YouTube for political information. Participants used YouTube predominantly for habitual entertainment and information-seeking purposes. But there was a strong relationship between political sur-veillance motivation and watching news, political ads, direct-to-camera videos, and cam-paign ads, suggesting YouTube could be a significant medium in future elections. Keywords YouTube, 2008 presidential primary elections, interactive media American voters chose the president of the United States in 2008, in the middle of a media revolution. New media sources such as MySpace and Facebook allowed voters to interconnect with candidates, advocates, and each other in ways not possible in pre-vious elections. Bloggers provided a running commentary about the election in near-real time, using a social media format that allowed for new voices to be heard. Eve