Great Facebook Race - Labour

pauldburgin Wed Apr 18, 2007 at 10:32:50 PM GMT Print-friendly version Facebook

Labour, the Tories, and the Lib Dems are currently engaged in a slightly childish but fun and worthwhile competition on Facebook



Want The Great Facebook Race - Labour to beat the Tories and Lib Dems. Then join us, or join Facebook and join us. It may be petty but Honour is at stake here. Currently we are way ahead of the Lib Dems but slightly lagging behind the Tories. Ladies and Gentlemen you know what your duty requires you to do ;)
Incidentally at the time of writing, Labour has 500 members, the Tories 691, and the Lib Dems 115

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Great Facebook Race - Labour | 13 comments (13 topical)

Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#1)

by Jag Singh on Wed Apr 18, 2007 at 11:36:08 PM GMT

I find this an exercise in futility. I've been on Facebook for over two years now, and it is the least flexible among the major social-networking players, especially when it comes to organising groups of people with common interests. The Hitwise research from last week did point out that Facebookers were more likely to vote than people on MySpace - but there itself lies the flaw. We don't need to attract people who are already interested in voting, it's those who have become disenchanted with the process that we need to target - not the people on Facebook (they're already Labour members or avid supporters).

This is how we did it in the US back in 2004 - we reached out and helped those disenfranchised voters enable themselves to become (and be considered) the party's new base. In 2006, this new base was enthusiastic and pressured the Democrats to get their act right.


Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#2)

by grimupnorth on Thu Apr 19, 2007 at 06:30:04 AM GMT

Way ahead  in Labour's Facebook Race is John McDonnell, who has  313 friends ....... and counting.One of them,BTW, is Peter Hain.......Michael Meacher has about  40.


Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#3)

by jonesythered on Thu Apr 19, 2007 at 10:17:56 AM GMT

Even more importantly, 358 people have joined the John4Leader group.

The leadership or deputy leadership candidate who comes closest is Hilar Benn who is on 244 members...


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Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#6)

by alexhilton on Thu Apr 19, 2007 at 07:01:34 PM GMT

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=751160229

erm 449 actually


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Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#7)

by doctordunc on Thu Apr 19, 2007 at 07:05:02 PM GMT


I assume the 244 was the Benn4Deputy group?  But these things don't stand still of course!


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Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#10)

by jonesythered on Fri Apr 20, 2007 at 11:08:46 AM GMT

I was referring to the Hilary Benn group, which has 244 members.

The 449 who have accepted Hilary Benn's invitation to be a friend aren't necessarily supporting him for the deputy.

Only those who actually join e.g. John4Leader or Hilary Benn groups can be considered supporters. And, as I've said, John4Leader supporters by far outnumber those of other candidates.


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Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#11)

by jonesythered on Fri Apr 20, 2007 at 11:09:39 AM GMT

Indeed, Peter Hain and John McDonnell are friends on facebook (as the Guardian diary noted the other week) - that doesn't mean they're backing each other!


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Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#12)

by grimupnorth on Fri Apr 20, 2007 at 12:31:06 PM GMT

Indeed...Guardian still owe me for that one....


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Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#4)

by jkitleft on Thu Apr 19, 2007 at 10:27:10 AM GMT

Is that an endorsement from Hain?!


Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#5)

by doctordunc on Thu Apr 19, 2007 at 06:13:30 PM GMT

I shouldn't think so...  Being a 'friend' on Facebook and Myspace does get awfully confusing... Gordon Brown is one of John4Leader's friends on Myspace (though I've a suspicion it's not really Gordon).

I think it's good that politicians make use of new media.  I agree that some of it is preaching to the converted, but you definitely get the message across to new people through this medium, and people do stumble across Myspace sites - on a like-minded friend's profile, for instance - than they stumble across official websites (which they generally have to be searching for).


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Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#8)

by pauldburgin on Fri Apr 20, 2007 at 08:56:02 AM GMT

It might not attract new converts, but anything that suits Labour ;).
As for friendships of the political sort, it just goes to show how wary we have to be with identity use and if someone is listed as doing something seen as out of the ordinary, such as "Gordon Brown" endorsing John McDonnell, then it should be ignored


Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#9)

by grimupnorth on Fri Apr 20, 2007 at 08:59:46 AM GMT

Nothing  on Facebook suggests endorsement......nor is anyone making any such claims.However,once you are on it then you CAN join a political group.As owen  pointed our earlier, the  John4Leader Facebook   group  has well over  300 members. For God's sake, lighten up.


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Re: Great Facebook Race - Labour (#13)

by doctordunc on Fri Apr 20, 2007 at 07:28:42 PM GMT


Well I hope it was clear from my previous message that I wasn't taking 'Gordon Brown' 's Myspace friendship to the John4Leader Myspace profile seriously!  Not that there's any reason why they can't be cyber chums!  As far as I know the Michael Meacher and Peter Hain ones are official or semi-official and they're both there (and presumably neither are endorsements!!)


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Great Facebook Race - Labour | 13 comments (13 topical)