YouTube: the new political campaign tool

Washington, Aug 17 (UNI) Welcome to the world of politics via the YouTube.

The programme, YouTube.com founded last year to share personal video clips on line has quickly become an Internet sensation with political campaigns and others with an axe to grind, have begun using the website to distribute videos, including campaign ads.

This week, the site made one of its biggest splashes with a video of Senator George Allen referring to an opponent's volunteer, who is of Indian descent, as a ''macaca'' during a campaign event in southwestern Virginia. A macaca is a Southeast Asian monkey.

The video was one of the most-viewed clip on the site yesterday, with more than 70,000 viewings, according to YouTube. But that video is certainly not the first political footage to be broadcast on YouTube.

There are plenty of clips of Ned Lamont, who toppled Senator Joe Lieberman in last week's Democratic primary in Connecticut by riding a wave of popularity on the Internet. A search of Mr Lamont's name produces more than 200 videos -- some of which are official campaign ads and others are homemade hit jobs.

Although the viewership of these videos varies widely, YouTube says its library of clips is accessed more than 70 million times each day. And it's all free.

''As more people capture special moments on video, YouTube is empowering them to become the broadcasters of tomorrow,'' the Website declares. ''And tomorrow's writers of the edgiest campaign commercials, too.'' The video titled ''Allen's Listening Tour'' shows Republican Senator George Allen at a recent campaign event in Breaks, Virginia., where he was trailed by a volunteer from the James H Webb Jr campaign.

After telling the audience that he plans to run his campaign on ''positive, constructive ideas,'' Allen singles out the young volunteer, named S R Sidarth of Indian descent, referring to him as ''macaca''.

''This fellow here, over here with the yellow shirt, macaca, or whatever his name is,'' the Virginia Republican says, to the amusement of supporters. After ridiculing the University of Virginia student for tracking him with a video camera, Mr Allen then says ''Let's give a welcome to macaca, here. Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia.'' Mr Allen's remarks created a political controversy and he has since apologised saying he had not intended to demean the young Indian American volunteer, who was born and raised in Fairfax County in Virginia.

Posted Monday on YouTube by ''WebbCampaign,'' the video was viewed nearly 2,000 times the first day. By Tuesday night, the video had been viewed more than 38,000 times, even though the site had crashed for six hours, according to the Washington Times.

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