The missing piece: Jesse Ventura, interactive campaigning and the launch of political cyberspace

The history of Internet based political campaigning in the United States underestimates the influence of wrestler turned politician Jesse Ventura. This thesis shows how Jesse Ventura's campaign helped shape twenty-first-century Internet politics, examining details of the gubernatorial candidate's message and techniques. Beginning with the Internet's influence on the elections of 1994 and 1996, this research shows that the introductory age of political Internet technology reached new heights with Jesse Ventura's unprecedented use of the medium. The story of techno-political fusion reveals an American political system always evolving and adapting in an ever-changing environment.