Netanyahu Takes A Page Out Of Obama's Playbook

Bridget Johnson of The Rocky Mountain News writes about how she was recently friended on Facebook by Bibi Netanyahu:

Around the same time, Knesset member Michael Eitan, also of the Likud Party, asked to be my Facebook friend. Then a prominent Israeli political strategist and convert from Kadima to Likud added me. Recently I added Likud MKs Gideon Sa’ar (deputy speaker of the Knesset) and Gilad Erdan.

We've already seen Israel get high marks on its utilization of the Internet during Operation Cast Lead, using blogs, YouTube and Twitter. Now we are seeing what an Israeli political party can do:

Never have I seen such proactive social networking like what’s come out of Likud staffers this campaign season. It’s the 2.0 version of precinct walking. Do you just set up the booth on the corner and wait for voters to come to you, or do you knock on doors and introduce yourself and your platform?

Especially considering Netanyahu and Eitan were sending friend requests to a non-Israeli. But again, that’s a wise move. Do I have a history of supporting Netanyahu and Likud? Yep, like lauding Netanyahu’s foresight on the Gaza withdrawal in a reflective 2006 column. Does Israel’s future depend solely on the support of Israelis? Of course not. So identifying global supporters and keeping them up to speed on the campaign is also wise.

So, what exactly are you likely to receive from these new friends on Facebook?

Granted, a lot of it is in Hebrew, and much comes from the prolific official Facebook group for Netanyahu, administered by Bibi and a handful of other Facebookers in Israel and the United States. They post invitations to Likud events, videos, and other media links, stories and sound bites, photos, discussions, and contact information. And once we became “friends,” Erdan quickly sent out an e-mail linking to his Web site. Netanyahu’s profile uses his status-update feature to post links to stories and events such as the Likud convention.

And in case you wondered, Bibi is all over the Twitter as well. Again, this doesn’t make him unique among politicians, but it is a key cog in a comprehensive campaign strategy that reaches out to myriad voter groups.

Whatever political capital Netanyahu may be reaping from current events, the Internet is giving Netanyahu an added dimension to his campaign:

But social networking for candidates is more about letting us know that Netanyahu is an Abba fan, likes the movie Gladiator, and also likes Robert DeNiro (badasses stick together). It’s giving people whose doors will never be knocked on or whose baby may never be kissed a link to the candidate on a slightly more personal level. It gives politicians a chance to interact with voters and to get their messages out in a medium that’s a lot cheaper and has greater range than those annoying mailers.

Read the whole thing.
It really isn't all that surprising to see Netanyahu utilizing the Internet this way. He made an appearance at the First International Jewish Bloggers Convention [which can still be viewed online], and even had a widget on his blog that allowed you to follow the Convention in real time--so it's obvious that even back in August he already saw the potential the Internet had for his campaign.

Now let's see if--should he be elected--he'll have a smoother start than Obama.

Technorati Tag: Netanyahu and Facebook and Likud.