October 29, 2010
by jonathan at 1:05 PM
At first glance one might think that the abundance of orange
and black being worn around the Topix office could be a sign that Halloween is
just around the corner. But closer inspection reveals that we have all caught
Giants fever.
However, not everyone around the country feels the same way.
So we have put up a fan map that lets our users weigh in on who they want
to win the World Series.
In spite of the whomping that the Giants dealt in the first
two games it looks like the majority of the country is still pulling for the
Rangers. Keep an eye on the fan map
to see if the tide changes as the series progresses.
And if baseball isn't of interest (cough...NBA, NFL, NHL) keep
in mind that Topix has sports news and forums that cover every game, league and roster. National, international, and local sports fans should
have no trouble keeping up with all their favorite teams.
October 20, 2010
by jonathan at 2:33 PM
Our Election 2010 Citizen Sound-Off campaign has people
buzzing. So far over 115,000 votes have
been cast in our polls for various races across the country. Even better, our
users have started nearly 2500 individual threads to discuss their political
views and talk about the issues on their minds.
Some of the most hotly debated races include the Kentucky
Senate seat between Rand Paul and Jack Conway, the West Virginia Senate race
where Joe Manchin and John Raese are running neck and neck, and the California
Governor race where Chelene
Nightingale, of the American Independent Party, has nearly double the votes of Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman
proving that you don't have to spend tons of cash for votes when you have a
good following on Facebook. (Take note Meg)
The elections are about two weeks away but that
shouldn't stop anyone from expressing their political opinions right now. Jump into the Citizen Sound-Off now and
get in on the conversation.
October 13, 2010
by jonathan at 9:47 AM
As we move closer to the November 2nd elections
media outlets are likely to inundate their audience with information regarding
the partisan push and pull of the Federal Congressional tides. They might even
keep them up to date on the more contentious Gubernatorial races. But where
will one go to get the lowdown on the elections that will hit closest to
home? Topix is the best bet.
The Election 2010 Citizen Sound-Off campaign gives Topix
users a chance to share their views on the political issues that matter most to
them. They are able to vote in polls, comment on candidates, and participate in
civic-minded discussions in our forums. Whether it be Federal, State, County,
or Municipal each race and ballot measure is open for debate.
A lot of this info was not previously available on the net.
In fact, some of it could only be obtained through obscure hand-written faxes. But
we persevered. At launch we have coverage for more than 13,000 races and
information on over 31,000 candidates and ballot measures. And if we don't
currently have a local race that is of particular interest, it can always be
submitted directly into our database.
Not only does this give voters a venue to socialize their
political opinions but it also provides candidates a means of directly
assessing feedback from their constituents. And media outlets can make use of
these "ground level" viewpoints to show the unfiltered political temperament of
the populace.
No race is too small and no issue too insignificant. If
there is a political opinion to be expressed you can bet that someone on Topix
is expressing it.
Jump to our elections page and start sounding
off now.
UPDATE (by tolles)
We've gotten some interesting coverage on this from Venturebeat, who looked at the political advertising angle, and the Christian Science Monitor, who took us to task over our statistical relevance (and to that point, I would say that it will vary quite a bit from poll to poll. Obviously, more interesting things happen after you have achieved a threshold of participation)
October 5, 2010
by tolles at 11:17 AM
Have you ever tried to find a local overlay to national sentiment around something? We’ve been trying to get a handle on what people think about national issues on a local level for a long time. And, with our Debate Maps, we’ve now created a way to harness the power of our localized audiences to deliver just that – data visualization of what the people in your town, and every town across the US, think about national issues such as Gay Marriage, Gun Control, Immigration or Health Care.
After 300,000+ comments and several million pageviews, the results were amazing - including the overwhelming support across the nation for the legalization of marijuana, backed up with cogent public policy arguments. However, even in the midst of the BP oil spill crisis, worries about the current economic climate outweighed environmental concerns when we asked about continued offshore drilling. That question did not spark nearly as much debate as our poll about Gay Marriage, whose results, while geographically diverse, were surprisingly evenly split.
Check out what people are thinking, locally, about these national issues:
What people in Altus, OK are saying:
This is no longer the wild wild west, where one hunted for food. Yes, I do support a ban on handguns. — Just Another Okie
The second amendment is about the preservation of liberty, not hunting. The people need the empowerment of arms, all sorts of the most powerful arms, now more than ever to preserve liberty. — Dagobert II
What people in Coeur d'Alene, ID are saying:
Are alcohol and pills my only choices for relaxation at the end of the day? It seems to me that weed is actually gentler on the body... — oneofmany
People are stupid enough as it is. Why make it worse? — Joetro
What people in Keavy, KY are saying:
It is an abomination in Gods eye. — Patrick
I believe that gays and lesbians should have the equal rights as heterosexuals do. Love is love. Can't stop the LOVE GOD has given you to give. — Keavy Man
What people in Thibodaux, LA are saying:
Untill we have public transport,buses, commuter trains, in rural areas we need gas to get to and from work, church, hospitals. I don't want to pay $10 per gallon. Let the states who don't want it off their shores pay. — Amanda<
It's quite self explanatory, I think. Without proper regulations, the cost of accidents to EVERYONE in this country is far far too high. — Angele
You can see all of our Debate Maps and represent your town's opinion here.
