election 2008
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Election '08 coming home in HD like never before
Sure, not every station's pulled out the Star Wars / Iron Man-style holograms for the 2008 election, but they're all trying to put shiny new HD studios to full use and get as many eyeballs as possible until things are decided. NBC & ABC immediately jumped out front at 7 p.m. with data pouring in on the widescreen edges of their HD feeds, with CNN waiting until states were decided to begin updating their lists. ABC's chosen to lean on its touchscreen display and forgo side graphics altogether, while despite Fox's claim as "America's Election HQ", with totally bare shoulders and boring sets, we're pointing our flatscreens elsewhere. PBS, despite airing the clearest, most high quality video available of three old guys at a table, has no slick touchscreens or HD graphics packages to speak of. Think about that as you check out the rest of the screens after the break, and during the next donation drive. Big Bird deserves better.
CNN's holographic freakout begins, seems totally bizarre and unnecessary
If you've been keeping your eyes fixed on CNN as this election unfolds, then by now you've seen Wolf Blitzer doing a "hologram" interview with Jessica Yellin. Not only does this technology seem completely creepy, but it's without a doubt one of the most useless and unnecessary pieces of phantasmagoric TV ever enacted. Enjoy some video and two more pics of the weirdness after the break.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Xbox Live US presidential election poll results
Following up on some presidential election polling results from September, Microsoft has revealed the results of its Xbox Live polling from the Halloween weekend. Obama jumped 10%, garnering 53% of the vote, while McCain gained two points for 33%, with 14% still undecided. Curiously, the Xbox Live poll had a similar Obama result to one done by CNN that same weekend.On the "issues poll" conducted at the same time, "jobs and the economy" took the top spot with 35%. Meanwhile, education, environment, health care and foreign policy all received percentages in the mid- to high-teens. Microsoft notes that as part of the "Rock the Vote" campaign, a million pieces of election-specific materials were downloaded from Live, along with 80,000 voter registration forms. And, once again, don't forget to vote today!
Is Azeroth a red state or a blue state?
From comedians Rich Kuras and Sandeep Parikh (who you know best from The Guild, most likely) comes a look at the United States presidential election through the eyes of Azeroth. If all of the 11 million active World of Warcraft subscriptions were US citizens, Azeroth would be the 8th largest state in the union. Rich Kuras looks to find out whether Azeroth would be a red or a blue state. I think the last thing any of us want is political fisticuffs, so just take this video as the light political humor that it is and don't read too much into it.The polling stats at the end are a little silly because the numbers most certainly wouldn't come out that way on a larger scale survey, but that's alright, it's not meant to be super accurate. It's just a silly little thing, and I chuckled at the commentary from the people they spoke to on both sides of the fence. Deep political commentary? No. Mildly entertaining? Yes! And I admit, I smirked at the mention of Mike Gravel.Thanks to all of you that wrote in about this video the last few days!
Obama-Biden top very scientific voter poll on Xbox Live
The results are in and Xbox Live has selected the next President of the United States. It's Master Chief. In other news, a completely unofficial presidential election poll has been running on Xbox Live as part of the Rock the Vote campaign. The scientifically engineered vote was based on gamercard download numbers; download a specific candidates card and your vote is cast. According to the team at GamerScore Blog, Obama-Biden nabbed a 12% lead over Republican rivals McCain-Palin. Independents and "Others" combined account 26% of "votes" in comparison to the Democrats 43% and the Republicans 31%. MS says more than 100,000 Live users have participated to date.So, what's the point? The point is pretty simple, come November 4 put that game on pause and hit your local polling station. It is your right to vote and deciding to stay in your gaming lair perfecting your Barbie Horse Adventure speedrun isn't a vote. We're not being rude but if you don't vote you're not allowed to complain about anything for the next four years. It's a rule.
Xbox Live 'Rock the Vote' poll results are in
Microsoft has provided a snapshot of the completely unofficial president election poll it's been running in conjunction with Rock the Vote. The idea was to offer Gamerpics representing Obama-Biden, McCain-Palin, Independent, and, er, "Other" (hopefully) sparking an interest in actual voting by offering the choice to select one as your public and/or private icon. MS says more than 100,000 Live users have participated to date.Today's tally has Obama-Biden in a 12% lead over their Republican rivals, garnering 43% of the vote to McCain-Palin's 31%. Independents and "Others" combined account for the remaining (and sizable) 26% of "votes." Listen, "Others" – if you're undecided, you'd best at least register and cast your vote on November 4. We don't care who it's for; just vote, 'kay? Thanks![Image credit: Jeff the Trojan]
iTunes Speechification
Doesn't matter whether you're a Republicrat or a Demublican, or if you're blue, red, or purple. If you've got an interest in World Events, the US iTunes stores has all the speeches from the recent American conventions -- from both sides of the aisle. The speeches and video highlights are free and available as podcasts for your delectation (and bonus raised blood pressure, where applicable).Pretty much everyone wants the same good things for the US and the world. Let these speeches help you decide which side can get you there. Thanks, Gordon Werner
What if politics were more like Pokemon?
If politics were more like Pokemon, we would be campaigning for Meowth. How can you lose when your platform consists of being totally awesome?But we digress ... One gamer has captured his view of this year's election lead-up with a mock Pokemon battle between the three presidential hopefuls. It has an obvious pro-Barack Obama slant and an anti-other candidates bias, but it's still clever enough to warrant a look no matter which politician you're leaning towards. Check it out past the post break as an animated GIF image and its evolved form, Youtube video!
The DS Life: Nintendobama
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/The_DS_Life_Nintendobama'; The DS Life is a weekly feature in which we scour the known world for narrative images of Nintendo's handheld and handheld gamers. If you have a photo and a story to match it with, send both to thedslife at dsfanboy dot com.As a rule, we don't trust any politicians, especially the ones we want to trust, so it's rare that you'll ever see us championing the merits of any particular presidential candidate. Besides, the electioneering scene just isn't something we want to be a part of, like the straight-edge scene or the liking-music-that-no-sensible-person-should-ever-enjoy scene. We're too laid back and cynical to involve ourselves in the passionate debates these conversations often require.Still, when one gamer goes to the extreme to express his devotion towards his favored statesman by decorating a Nintendo DS Lite with the politician's face, we take notice ...
