Ken Buck may lose the U.S. Senate election because he failed to effectively use ads, his debates with Michael Bennet, his web site, e-mails, news releases, blogs, Facebook or Twitter to fight back when the Left used those tools to gin up outrage over a date rape case that he handled professionally, if not as sensitively as he might have.

Chuck Plunkett reviews how the Left used The Colorado Independent, Coloradopols, Facebook and Twitter to spread the made up outrage. My comment on his piece is cross posted with some links below the jump:

I'm a conservative blogger. I've been blogging since Jan. 2003 and for a long time---since early this year---on Twitter and Facebook.

In Colorado, several politicians use Twitter and Facebook. They post, but they don't respond. Some retweet, most don't. Most of their posts are worthless drivel about their schedules or the weather.

Dan Maes frequently posts and sometimes makes news on FB, but as often or not, he posts things that show he can't write and doesn't get it. I think he hurts himself more often than not.

During the primaries, a few conservatives posted frequently on FB in support of and in defense of their candidates. They're still arguing about Maes v. Tancredo. As far as I can tell, they aren't making much use of Twitter where I post several times a day.

The Left's attack on Buck worked because they had a rape case that was sure to rile up a lot of people. For such attacks to work, they have to be related to hot topics, if not the truth. Rape victims are hot topics. The ruckus was made up. It is hurting Buck because of his wrong-headed positions on personhood and abortion. He was ripe for the attack.

While the Left attacked, I blogged and tweeted mostly in Buck's defense on the over blown outrage about the date rape non scandal. However, I pretty much joined in the Left's attack on Buck's immoral positions on personhood and abortion.

What's interesting is that neither Buck nor his supporters used FB, Twitter or blogs to effectively respond to his attackers. Heck, Buck's replies in TV debates were disasters.

Indeed, only Tom Tancredo has come close to making effective use of his home page, e-mails, FB and Twitter to reach his supporters. And he's probably only got about 20% of the mileage out of those communications tools that he could.

That Colorado's conservative bloggers don't link to each other or post on FB or Twitter as much as they could further weakens the conservatives' effectiveness compared with the Left's. I think the Left could be five times as effective as it is, btw.

Mostly old folks who don't get the Internet are running Republicans' campaigns this year. And the young folks who are campaign managers and strategists aren't doing much better.

To me, that means the candidates and their managers don't value bloggers, Facebook or Twitter anywhere as much as they should.

In Buck's case, his failure to be ready for the Left's use of blogs, FB and twitter to attack him may be costing him the election.

LINKS:

h/t Lynn Bartels.

Trick or tweet, by Chuck Plunkett

Rape victim praises Ken Buck for sending guy who raped her to prison for 24 years, The Business Word, 10.14.2010.

Why are Michael Bennet's supporters exploiting rape victim? Why won't he stop them? The Business Word, 10.14.2010.

 Our view: Group exploits rape victim to smear Buck, by Wayne Laugesen.

Ken Buck's paying for his extremism on abortion, personhood, The Business Word, 10.13.2010.

Swiftboating Ken Buck, by Ross Kaminsky.

CoDA Alert: ProgressNow and Colorado Independent coordinate 'Buck rape case' story, by Michael Sandoval.

Sex and politics in the Senate race, by Chuck Plunkett.

Liberal group releases 2005 tape of Ken Buck's advice to alleged date-rape victim, by Allison Sherry.

Michael Bennet Dems trying to turn Ken Buck's decision in 5-year-old rape case into major scandal, by Donald E. L. Johnson.

Rape case haunts Buck in Colo, by David Catanese.

 Buck's refusal to prosecute 2005 rape case reverberates in U.S. Senate race; Critics: Weld DA's treatment of alleged victim 'shows his view of women. By Scot Kersgaard.