CHACHA / ROCK THE VOTE BEGINS TO DELIVER

Despite a few delays, Chacha has begun to deliver answers to questions about the US presidential election sent in the US to RTVOTE (788683), a political information program being operated in partnership with Rock the Vote. We sent three queries on October 15th and again on October 20th. We never received answers to the queries on the 15th, but received the responses as indicated to our queries on the 20th:

Query: "What are the positions on climate change?"

Answer: "Both candidates are for controlling emissions to stop climate change and reverse the greenhouse effect. ChaCha for now!"

Analysis: while climate change is considered by many to be the most important issue we are facing, it doesn't rank nearly as high as the economy or the war on terror in American voters' minds. While Chacha's answer doesn't reflect any of the differences in the candidates' positions and isn't likely to excite anyone to go to the polls, the answer seems reasonable given the complexity of the subject, the similarity of the candidates' positions, and the limitations of the SMS media.

Question: "What are the hours of absentee voting in Virginia?"

Answer: "The polls are open (6:00 AM to 7:00 PM). Telephone: 804 864-8901, Toll Free: 800 552-9745. Ask ChaCha 24/7! *Reply VOTE2008 for Election info."

Analysis: This is clearly non-responsive--the right answer to the wrong question. The polls are open on election day, November 4th, from 6 AM to 7 PM. However, many people are interested in voting early by absentee ballot either because they will be unable to vote on the 4th or because of the difficulties Americans have experienced recently with election mechanics. Absentee ballots may only be cast before November 4th at limited locations and may be cast in person during much more limited hours than this answer suggests. Rock The Vote's objective is to increase turnout, so incorrect answers such as this are counter productive. The 2000 election was decided by the US Supreme Court and if this turns out to be a close election, it is likely that there will be extended litigation on voter fraud and voter suppression--including incorrect or misleading voting information such as this.

Question: "What are the odds, the line on the presidential race?"

Answer: "Barack Obama: -600 John McCain: +350 if you were thinking about betting McCain, now is the time as his odds dropped considerably $Rply VOTE2008 for more info."

Analysis: this seems like a reasonable response, consistent with the results we found on www.1800-sports.com/presidential-betting-odds.shtml, which explains that a US$ 100 wager on McCain will pay US$ 600, and a US$ 600 wager on Obama will pay US$ 100. (Linesmaker.com offers a different yet similar response: McCain at 4-1, Obama at 1-7).

Services such as ChaCha are terrific for casual questions and social networking, but they may not be as well suited for questions that people take seriously, involving matters such as heated elections. ChaCha was not available for comment on these results. -Stuart Whitaker