Campaign veterans to discuss social media and elections Tuesday, Oct. 30

Experts in politics and digital media will discuss social media's role in the 2012 Presidential Campaign Tuesday, Oct. 30. The event will begin at 8:30 a.m. in the Holeman Lounge with continental breakfast and coffee; the program will begin at 9 a.m.

Americans now follow real-time debate commentary via Twitter, advocate for their candidates on Facebook and join Internet memes with Tumblr. Balancing tried-and-true strategies with bold experimentation, the campaigns of both President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney have invested heavily in social media as part of their fundraising, grassroots and media strategies.

The event is $10 for non-members and free to members using the code "NPCOnline." Both groups can register here.

A panel will focus on how the 2012 presidential candidates have used social media, what future U.S. elections will look like as social media become even more predominant, and why communications executives should weigh these trends when considering their clients' goals and strategies.

The panel includes:

David Almacy, senior vice president, digital strategies at Edelman Public Relations, and an adjunct lecturer at The George Washington University. A high profile expert on digital strategy and politics, Almacy was responsible for digital strategy in the George W. Bush White House and campaign.

Colin Delany, founder and editor of Epolitics.com, a site that focuses on the tools and tactics of Internet politics and online political advocacy. The author of "How Candidates Can Use the Internet to Win in 2012" and a comprehensive guide to the 2008 Obama online campaign, Delany has worked as a consultant to help dozens of advocacy campaigns promote themselves in the digital world.

Alex Howard, the Government 2.0 Washington correspondent for O'Reilly Media, where he writes about the intersection of government, the internet and society, including how technology is being used to help citizens, cities, and national governments solve large-scale problems. He has contributed to the National Journal, Forbes, the Huffington Post, Govfresh, ReadWriteWeb, Mashable, CBS News' What's Trending, Govloop, Governing People, the Association for Computer Manufacturing and the Atlantic, amongst others.

Moderator Anthony Shop is managing director of the digital agency Social Driver and chair of the Events Committee.