MTV Networks' New Study "The Election Effect" Reveals How Campaign 2008
Has Shaped Youth Attitudes toward Experience, Age, Race and Gender Now and
Beyond November
NEW YORK, Oct. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- While the tickets of Obama/Biden and
McCain/Palin have catapulted the issue of experience to the forefront of
the 2008 presidential campaign, voters between the ages of 18 and 34 rank
experience low among the qualities they want in the next president,
according to MTV Networks' new study, "The Election Effect: Issues Shaping
Young Voters Now and Beyond November." The study, designed to identify how
the campaign has shaped young voters' thinking in the voting booth and
beyond, revealed that many of the attitudes of today's young voters
challenge the conventional wisdom around key themes in this election,
including experience, age, race and gender.
"The Election Effect study paints a picture of how the campaign has
shaped young voters' thinking on some of its most prominent themes, and
what's clear is that young Americans value leadership and vision far more
than they do experience," said Judy McGrath, Chairman and CEO, MTV
Networks.
"This generation has watched Marc Zuckerberg, LeBron James and Carrie
Underwood break convention and shoot from anonymity to celebrity overnight.
To young Americans, 'shortcutting' is cool," said Colleen Fahey Rush,
Executive Vice President of Strategic Insights and Research, MTV Networks.
Experience and Age
The study revealed that despite the overwhelming emphasis on experience
and age throughout the campaign, these qualities mean little to young
adults. When asked to choose the most important factor in determining
whether someone is ready to be president, a full 78 percent of young voters
chose "leadership qualities" and "vision" over "proven experience in
government" or the time a candidate has spent "learning the ropes and the
issues." For Obama and McCain supporters alike, experience ranked 11th out
of 12 characteristics young voters want in the next president. Integrity is
the true threshold characteristic that all young voters want and respect.
HOW CLOSE DOES EACH WORD SUM UP WHAT Mean for All Voters
YOU WANT IN THE NEXT PRESIDENT?
(RANK 1-100)
Integrity 87
Security 80
Change 80
Openness 80
Innovation 77
Optimism 77
Patriotism 76
Unity 76
Progressive 76
Caring 76
Experience 69
Conservative 51
Additionally, with Obama and McCain separated by the largest age
difference of any two presidential candidates in American history, age has
been a prominent point of discussion throughout the campaigns. Yet, the
majority of 18-to-34 year-old voters are unfazed by the age difference,
with 60 percent saying one's age does not make a candidate more or less
qualified for the presidency.
Race and Gender
Young voters see the candidacy of Barack Obama as having a
transformational event for the dynamics of race in the United States.
According to The Election Effect, 57 percent of all young voters, and 69
percent of African American voters, say that an African American being the
presidential nominee of one of the two major parties signals a major step
forward for the country that will have a lasting impact.
Young voters see the same historic significance in the achievements of
Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin as well, albeit to a lesser extent. Of
those surveyed, 47 percent of all respondents, and 49 percent of young
women, think that having a woman come close to winning her party's
nomination and a woman Republican vice presidential nominee signals a major
step forward for the country.
Worried, but Upbeat
Today's young voters are very in tune to the economic strife at hand.
When asked what change they would like to see come out of this election,
young voters volunteered economic answers by a factor of better than two to
one over any other issues. Yet despite their anxiety, The Election Effect
reveals an overall optimism among this group, with 61 percent of young
voters saying that this election is a chance to elect someone who can
really make a difference in changing and improving their own lives and
their own futures. And regardless of their political allegiances, few young
voters say they will be "depressed and disillusioned" if their candidate
does not win.
For many young voters, there's a prevailing feeling that this election
feels different. They've gained countless new outlets and tools to collect
and share political information, and they're using them. Fifty-seven
percent of those surveyed say that there are a lot of differences in the
way they relate to the presidential campaign this year compared to past
elections.
Six in 10 voters under age 35 have done one or more of the following
four things: a) read a political blog, b) posted on a political blog, c)
made contact with a candidate or political cause on a social networking
site, or d) sent or received text messages about politics. Twenty-eight
percent of voters in this generation frequently engage in at least one of
these four ways.
Methodology
On behalf of MTV Networks, the bipartisan polling team of Peter D. Hart
Research Associates and McLaughlin & Associates conducted the nationwide
survey among 1,245 registered voters under the age of 35, as well as
in-depth, qualitative interviews with selected respondents from the survey
to further explore their impressions, attitudes, hopes and fears related to
this election.
About MTV Networks
MTV Networks, a division of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is one of the
world's leading creators of entertainment content, with brands that engage
and connect diverse audiences across television, online, mobile, games,
virtual worlds and consumer products. The company's portfolio spans more
than 150 television channels and 350 digital media properties worldwide,
and includes MTV, VH1, CMT, Logo, Harmonix, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite,
Noggin, The N, AddictingGames, Neopets, COMEDY CENTRAL, Spike TV, TV Land,
Atom, GameTrailers and Xfire.
SOURCE MTV Networks
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Related links:
http://www.mtv.com
CONTACT:
Carole Robinson, +1-212-846-8760,
carole.robinson@mtvstaff.com, or Mark Jafar, +1-212-846-8961,
mark.jafar@mtvstaff.com, both of MTV Networks
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