[Azure]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...wontonline0912

TORONTO — The Ontario election battle being waged in cyberspace is decidedly nastier than what voters are seeing on the campaign trail, with the Liberals lurking behind the most scathing attack ads, an Internet electioneering expert said Wednesday.

In terms of party presence on the web, both the Liberals and Progressive Conservatives are dominating, but he noted their tactics differ greatly, said Ryerson University professor Greg Elmer.


While the Liberals are playing hard ball, posting largely negative ads about Conservative Leader John Tory under a variety of aliases, Mr. Elmer said the Conservatives have taken an uncharacteristically playful approach — slamming the Liberals in a YouTube parody of the animated Simpsons show, for example.


“(The Liberals) are consistently uploading negative videos, particularly on Tory, that are getting the highest number of views compared to the other two parties,” Mr. Elmer said, whose Infoscape Research Lab is tracking how both the “official” and “unofficial” election campaigns are playing out over the web.

Sad. Just sad.