"YouTube Debate"

Abstract

The convergence of television with Internet technologies has renewed the discussion about a new era of political communication. The adoption of Internet communication regulations in television programs has created a new hybrid model of “Internetized Television.” This hybrid model aims to reverse the passivity of television democracy, supporting a more active political participation by citizens. In this paper, an extensive empirical study of certain variables relating to participation in internetized television was conducted, focusing, in particular, on the impact of this new medium during the 2007 national elections in Greece, when a specific broadcast was aired on TV, namely the “Skai-YouTube Debate.” Based on the results of the authors’ survey, an in-depth theoretical discussion of the political and communicative challenges imposed by this form of internetized television was conducted.