An Online History

The Museum of the Moving Image takes an intriguing look at the history of campaign websites in its online exhibit, "The Desktop Candidate."  The first election to feature campaign websites was the 1996 race, though the technologies employed were, by today's standards, simplistic.  Not surprisingly, the Clinton/Gore website and the Dole/Kemp homepage were both used to emphasize the candidate's Internet policy views.

Four years later, the 2000 race featured a much more integrated use of the Internet in campaigning.  Attack websites (anti-Bush, anti-Gore) were even launched, aimed as discrediting the other major party candidate.

By 2004, candidate sites functioned "as the online version of candidate headquarters."  The exhibit notes, however, a declining emphasis on the website in 2008, and increased use, instead, of e-mail and social networking tools.

A gallery of all the major party sites from 1996 through 2004 is featured in the exhibit.