Without credible action or evidence, energy independence may be a tired talking point for the youth vote

I think President Obama is wise to focus the narrative on energy independence — a focal point of his 2008 campaign and something that Newt Gingrich (and before dropping out, Michele Bachman) has made a major part of his campaign.

But the greater question is not will young people respond to talk of energy independence. This generation of Millenials is tired of foreign policy being dominated by our middle eastern oil interests.

The looming question is: Will young people believe anything Obama has to say about energy independence?

Lets look at the facts — presidential candidates since Clinton have been pledging and promising to break this country's oil addiction, and none have come close. In fact, we're probably more oil dependent now then we were during the first Gulf War.

So, Alexander, what can President Obama do during the next year to prove he's not all talk on energy independence?

The 'Energy Innovation President'

Given the economic news today, it couldn't be President Obama's best speech. As gas prices soared, the mainstream media narrative forced him to be on the defensive.

During his address to students at the University of Miami, as CNN reported, Obama attacked "his Republican critics promising immediate lower gas prices are either uninformed or dishonest." He also promised to intensify his campaign for continued investment in alternative energy sources. Their story continued:

Framing the issue as "one of the major challenges of your generation," Obama said developing a broad-based energy policy incorporating all sources -- oil, gas, nuclear, solar, wind and alternatives such as algae -- would take years but was essential for the nation's future economic well-being.

President Obama smartly promoted his successful partnership with the American automobile industry and its economic revival in the last year. "Our cooperation with the private sector has positioned this country to be the world’s leading manufacturer of high-tech batteries that will power the next generation of American cars -- that use less oil; maybe don't use any oil at all," Obama said.

He challenged today's generation to "think big" about our energy challenges without focusing on one particular bold solution. "We’ve got to summon the spirit of optimism and that willingness to tackle tough problems that led previous generations to meet the challenges of their times -– to power a nation from coast to coast, to send a man to the moon, to connect an entire world with our own science and our own imagination."

Suggesting he is the 'Energy Innovation President,' Obama did more good than harm in his speech today. Will this type of rhetoric be enough to seal young people's ballots to reelect, Wesley?

The more they debate, the more GOP scares away young support

It's far too early to weigh-in on the song and dance surrounding President Obama or to determine that it isn't as developed as during the 2008 campaign.

At this point in 2008, there was no will.i.am video, nor was their vocal support from most of the celebs who eventually backed Obama. In fact, then Democratic frontrunner Hilary Clinton enjoyed an equal amount of celebrity support.

I'd argue that Obama earned much of his prominent backing based on three distinct characteristics of the electorate.

First, after eight years of preemptive wars and socially conservative domestic policies, American voters were eager to embrace the more liberal policies offered up by whoever the Democratic candidate would have been.

Second, Obama is a skilled speaker. He comes across as reasonable and well-thought out. No matter where you sit on the spectrum, you want to believe him when he speaks.

Finally, celebrities — who sit a little further to the left on the spectrum then the average American — hated President Bush.

I can't state strongly enough how much of Obama's celebrity support came due to disillusionment with President George W. Bush partnered with the mobilizing effect of Obama's charismatic and visionary oration.

At the end of the day, whether it be Gingrich, Santorum or Romney, I can't see celebrity support crystalizing around any of the GOP hopefuls.

Just look at their answers in tonight's GOP Debate in Mesa, Arizona. While the candidates, most notably Romney on his responses about the auto bailouts, looks to move to the center on some of the major issues, this slate still represents candidates forced too far to the right during the primary to be successful in the national election.

The obvious exception is Ron Paul, and also-rans Jon Huntsman and Gary Johnson. Just imagine, for a second, if it was those three on the stage plus Mitt Romney. The GOP rhetoric would be much more moderate and therefore, more marketable to the general electorate.

Hopefully, once the field has narrowed a bit more following the slew of primaries during the next two weeks , the GOP candidate will be able to flee some of the more divisive stances they've all been forced to take with the likes of Rick Santorum, Michelle Bachmann and other extreme conservatives in the race, who have forced the dialogue ridiculously far to the right.

In the meantime, President Obama continues to the excite his young base through his smooth voice — both in speeches and songs.

Alexander: What must Obama do in his Thursday speech in Florida to more solidify his stranglehold on young voters?

Will Obama's 2012 cadre of enthusiastic celebrity boosters be the same X factor for young voters it was in 2008?

Traditional media have the opportunity to construct a lasting campaign narrative. They also have the resources to most comprehensively investigate the candidates and tell their stories for the general public with the greatest resonance. The campaigns ought to know this.

I am not yet convinced that Web 2.0, while a fast-paced guide to our campaign news and a fundraising jackpot for many candidates, has the same substantive journalistic half-life that mainstream outlets do.

Now, my friend: I am going to deviate completely and ask a question of you (one frequently raised when we analyze the youth vote on cable news and elsewhere).

Will Obama's cadre of enthusiastic celebrity boosters be the same X factor for young voters it was in 2008? Julie Mason asked me this on SiriusXM's POTUS channel today. (One of the most fun and thoughtful politicos, she has invited me to be a regular contributor to her program, The Press Pool.)

For one, 'The Boss' - Bruce Springsteen - says he's reluctant to hit the trail this year. But one-time NBA superstar and Dallas Maverick shooting guard Vince Carter is clearly not. He's hosting a fundraiser for Obama at his Florida home during this week's All-Star hiatus.

(On Thursday, Obama is delivering a key economic address at the University of Miami, where he'll have to strike a convincingly populist tone with Floridian students who are disengaged, according to the data we've analyzed, and not yet likely to vote.)

Back to celebrities: Who doesn't remember the significance of will.i.am's "Yes, We Can" music video, the moving tribute that made Obama a true pop culture icon, transforming his political campaign into a national, even global, movement?

We have been told we cannot do this by a chorus of cynics...they will only grow louder and more dissonant ........... We've been asked to pause for a reality check. We've been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope.

Indeed, those cynics (and critics) of Hope & Change have grown louder three years into the Obama administration. And, indeed, governing has become even uglier since '08 for a candidate who promised an end to petty, partisan and problematic American politics.

So, how could the chorus of such a galvanizing video sing today: "Yes, we did (shrink unemployment by a decimal or two)"..."We're getting there"..."Don't change horse midstream"?

Sadly, for both President Obama and the country's morale, there is little sexy about the politics of pragmatism, half-kept or unfulfilled promises or two-party trench warfare.

This is all to say that winning the message war after "Yes, we can," and the subsequent mixed results (at best), will be tough. An even harder pill to swallow for Camp Obama may be the fallout of this for young voters.

Wesley, you and I would never undersell young voters' very real political engagement and concerns, aside from celebrities. But there's no doubt that the momentum of will.i.am and other new generation artists led some first-time voters to a new political consciousness.

In my estimation, right now, the decreasing celebrity song-and-dance surrounding Obama's reelection efforts will probably somewhat dilute youth enthusiasm and their eventual vote. Agreed?

Have we misread Gen Y and overstated social media's role in campaign 2012?

After a relatively quiet weekend with regard to election news, I want to kick the week off by taking a look at an interesting piece published in Campaigns and Elections this morning in which political media consultant Tom Edmonds argues the case for newspaper advertisements as a means of reaching not only young voters, but all voters.

At first, I was skeptical of his premise. But then he laid down some statistical backing, courtesy of a Pew Research Center report from earlier this year.

Debunking the argument that young people are turning exclusively to Facebook and Twitter for their political fixes, the poll found that just 29 percent of those ages 18-29 are getting their campaign updates from online news sources — down from 42 percent in 2008.

And even older voters are turning — surprisingly — to newspapers for the bulk of their political news. Edmonds writes:

A whopping 80 percent of voters 35 and older are regular readers of newspapers in print or online. Yes, I said online. According to another national survey in January of this year, Moore Information's American Voters Media Use Study, one in four Americans report using a mobile device for campaign news and of those newspaper sources are the number one choice for 58 percent. Even among young voters who do use smartphones et al for campaign news a whopping 62 percent go to newspaper sources. And it's not just "mobile devices." Newspaper websites rank #1 in 22 of the top 25 largest markets.

Alexander: Given these numbers and analysis, has the role of social media in campaigning been overstated? Is it possible that, instead of boasting about their number of Twitter followers and chiding the news media, the GOP candidates should be more focused on traditional media coverage?