Xbox and Massive Used to Rock the Vote

It was big news a few weeks ago when Microsoft announced that US citizens could use their XBox 360s to register for the 2008 United States Elections.  The eligible youth vote has always been a segment with one of the lowest voting turnouts on election day.  Some blame a generation gap, other sees a lack of influence, while many blame simple apathy.  Regardless of the reasons, no one can argue that the youth vote across America will yield decision-making influence between McCain and Obama in key battleground states, such as Virgina. 

A few months ago, I made it clear that I was a strong Obama supporter, mainly because of his ability to inspire and lead but also because of his reasonable understanding of technology issues and how they affect my world both at Microsoft and at home.  This is why it was no shock to me when I read that the Obama camp spent $44,000 in-game advertising with Massive.  I was shocked, however, that McCain decided not to pursue this relatively cheap opportunity to reach the youth vote.  Not that it would’ve mattered if he did, in my opinion, because youth republicans prefer the “elitist” pleasures of a PS3 console :)