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The candidates can also be harmed by YouTube's automatically chosen Related Videos. Virtually any video by Clinton will prompt users to watch videos by Obama and other Democrats. In some cases, videos attacking her are suggested. These videos are frequently of a nature that no opposing candidate would endorse. One of the most popular Clinton videos on YouTube is of her singing the American national anthem with all the tunefulness and enthusiasm of a Stansted baggage handler. Many of the nearly 8,000 comments are derogatory, and it's difficult to imagine any of the 1.7 million viewers leaving the video with an improved perception of Clinton.

Similarly, Rudy Giuliani's disastrous campaign can hardly have been helped by the major websites. With the former mayor of New York deciding not to compete in the early primaries and concentrate his efforts on Florida, he badly needed to maintain the impression that his campaign still carried support. But as they went to the polls in the Sunshine State, Giuliani had the fewest "friends" of any Republican on Digg.com and only 14,000 friends on Facebook - rival Ron Paul had more than 80,000. Giuliani looked like a beaten man and the electorate voted accordingly, placing him third - and out of the race.

So will the next occupant of the White House have Google or Digg to thank? Not everyone is convinced.

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Jackson says the internet "does not work very well for reaching voters who aren't already excited about the candidate" and, even though the likes of Obama have been successful with online, grassroots campaigns, "it's still up to him to collect enough like-minded people to get elected.

"Howard Dean used the internet at least as well four years ago, but in the end he didn't get enough votes," Jackson notes. "Ron Paul is having the same experience this time around."

Huge online support may even mean less financial support for candidates. "Instinct tells me online donations are smaller than donations collected at, say, fundraising events," says Massie Ritsch. "Big donors want special access. They want to be able to see the candidate and even talk with him. Giving through a website doesn't satisfy them."

The story of Ron Paul is a cautionary tale for politicians looking to make YouTube, Facebook and Digg their friends. For all of his online support, Paul failed to win a single primary. Obama's campaign, however, is an undeniable success story. Without the backing of a political dynasty or a lifetime devoted to politics, he has turned online support into both campaign donations and actual votes. It's important not to underestimate his resonance with voters hungry for change, but should he make it all the way to the White House, Google's performance could be just as important as his own.

Britain's net loss

After the on/off saga of last summer, Britain is now unlikely to see a General Election before spring 2009. With plenty of time to prepare, will YouTube, Google and Digg attempt to get involved over here? A spokesperson for Digg.com says the news aggregator site will "definitely consider" bringing a political flavour of Digg to the UK, and there's already a section of YouTube devoted to UK politics at www.youtube.com/ukpolitics.