Week 7 (11/14): What analytics can show us online

In many respects, the friendliest place to approach politics in scientific terms is online, where every click is trackable, every user followable. But in certain respects the old New Yorker cartoon caption on the Internet no one knows you’re a dog applies: linking voters’ online activities to identities offline, where people are registered and cast ballots, remains a major challenge. What can campaigns test and measure online and how can they draw conclusions from it about politics IRL?

Guest: Amelia Showalter, former director of online analytics, Obama for America