인터넷 선거라 불렸던 2002년 대선과 비교하여 2007년 대선 당시 온라인 선거운동 환경은 상당한 발전을 이루었다. 인터넷 이용률의 증가, 블로그와 미니홈피와 같은 활동공간의 확대 그리고 이미지와 동영상 등 표현수단의 다양화도 이뤄졌다. 본 연구 는 온라인 공간의 성장에도 불구하고 17대 대선에 서 온라인 선거캠페인이 전혀 주목받지 못한 원인 을 탐색한다. 2007년 대선에서 온라인 선거캠페인의 부진은 인터넷 정치 자체의 한계에서 비롯되었다기보다는 유권자들의 관심을 끌지 못한 선거환경의 문제, 과 도한 온라인 규제, 그리고 온라인 선거캠페인 전략 의 부재에서 비롯된 현상이다. 온라인 선거캠페인 부진의 가장 큰 원인은 네티즌들의 관심을 끌지 못 한 선거환경에 있었다. 네티즌들의 공감을 얻을 수 있는 선거이슈도 없었을 뿐 아니라 대선 후보들의 네티즌 흡입력도 약했다. 또한 지나친 규제도 온라 인 선거캠페인을 위축시키는데 한 몫을 하였다. 온 라인 선거운동의 저조 원인은 인터넷 선거전략의 실패에서도 찾을 수 있다. 네티즌들의 온라인 활동 방식이 웹2.0방식으로 변하였으나 온라인 캠페인은 여전히 2002년 대선 당시의 웹1.0방식에 머물러 네티즌들과 상호작용에 실패하였다.

Online campaign environment in 2007 presidential election has been considerably developed since the ‘nternet election’of 2002. The number of internet users has fairly increased, online space has expanded from home pages to blogs, cafes, and mini-home pages, and expressive means in cyberspace has also diversified into images, flashes, and video clips. In spite of these developments of online campaign environment, the internet did not have an apparent affect on the 2007 election. This study probes into the causes of inactive internet election. The responsibility for inactive on-line campaign in 2007 election should not be shifted to natural limits of the internet politics itself. Rather, it should be interpreted by some environmental factors in online and offline world. The most critical source for inactive on-line campaign may be problem of the election environment which failed to arouse interests of the voters. Election issues failed to gain the sympathy of the netizens, and the presidential candidates were not attractable enough to have a mass support of the netizens. Excessive regulation on online campaign and absence of on-line election campaign strategy should share some responsibility for inactive internet election. Netizens’online participation has been shrunken by the extreme regulation on the online campaign. Online campaign strategy of the candidates which stayed with web 1.0 method failed to make interaction with netizens who have already changed to web 2.0 method of online activities.

Online campaign environment in 2007 presidential election has been considerably developed since the ‘nternet election’of 2002. The number of internet users has fairly increased, online space has expanded from home pages to blogs, cafes, and mini-home pages, and expressive means in cyberspace has also diversified into images, flashes, and video clips. In spite of these developments of online campaign environment, the internet did not have an apparent affect on the 2007 election. This study probes into the causes of inactive internet election. The responsibility for inactive on-line campaign in 2007 election should not be shifted to natural limits of the internet politics itself. Rather, it should be interpreted by some environmental factors in online and offline world. The most critical source for inactive on-line campaign may be problem of the election environment which failed to arouse interests of the voters. Election issues failed to gain the sympathy of the netizens, and the presidential candidates were not attractable enough to have a mass support of the netizens. Excessive regulation on online campaign and absence of on-line election campaign strategy should share some responsibility for inactive internet election. Netizens’online participation has been shrunken by the extreme regulation on the online campaign. Online campaign strategy of the candidates which stayed with web 1.0 method failed to make interaction with netizens who have already changed to web 2.0 method of online activities.

2007 presidential election, online campaign, UCC election, social network service