HALIFAX - Politicians flocking to popular social networking websites like Facebook aren't realizing the potential of the technology and are missing an opportunity to open real discussion with voters, say observers and users of the site.
But they add that such attempts to connect with voters over the Internet, while far from perfect now, could foreshadow a better future for online politics.
Politicians of all stripes have recently been creating profiles on Facebook, each looking to sign up virtual "friends'' they hope will listen to -- and help distribute -- their messages.
Liberal Leader Stephane Dion's official Facebook profile leads the pack with just under 5,000 users in his social network.
NDP Leader Jack Layton has almost 2,000 on the site, while Green party Leader Elizabeth May has about 200.
A growing number of federal and provincial politicians also have accounts, including Nova Scotia Premier Rodney MacDonald, Prince Edward Island Premier Pat Binns and Liberal MP Belinda Stronach, whose friends list tops 1,000.
And there are several dubious profiles claiming to be Prime Minister Stephen Harper -- some obviously fake and others more subtle.
Daniel Pare, who teachers communications at the University of Ottawa, says he doesn't think the latest Facebook trend will make much of a difference.
"It's experimenting,'' says Pare, who argues Canadian politicians traditionally have viewed the Internet as a "glorified political brochure.''
"If they begin to bring in a greater dimension of interactivity, then perhaps that can change.''
Pare says most people searching for partisan information on the Internet -- especially on Facebook, where users must make a request to join someone's network -- likely agree with the politicians already.
"If I'm a young Liberal or a young Tory, chances are I'd try to track that stuff down,'' he says. "If I'm not politically inclined, I'm not going to go looking for it.''
Facebook lets users view biographical information, comment on the politicians' profiles, see information about upcoming events and send messages to whomever is checking the e-mail on the other end.
Some politicians let just about anyone join their networks, which are typically maintained by their staff, while others appear to be more selective.
But most profiles look more like extensions of campaign materials than an opportunity for voters -- party members or not -- to have a conversation with their politicians.
Andrew Escobar, who counts Stephane Dion as one of his Facebook friends, says he thinks politicians are missing an opportunity to use the Internet to connect with their grassroots.
"It's getting a bit silly, it's like every one of our MPs is on Facebook these days,'' says Escobar, 21, a self-described "hard-core Liberal'' living in Toronto.
"I think they're using it, at least on Facebook, in a very partisan way. I like it more when you know it's them genuinely writing or communicating with you. It's not really open communication.''
The best Canadian example of such open communication, says Prof. Mike Federman of the University of Toronto, is MP Garth Turner's website, www.garth.ca.
Turner's site features a blog, videos and other content created by Turner, and gives visitors a chance to interact with the Conservative-turned-Liberal politician.
"Over the next decades, this will become more and more sophisticated and more natural,'' says Federman.
Federman says U.S. politicians are further ahead in using the Internet to engage voters, especially since Howard Dean's failed bid for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination.
Dean led his competitors in fundraising early on in the campaign, which surprised observers and was largely attributed to a wave of online grassroots support.
"Howard Dean succeeded tremendously well in changing the dynamics of politics -- people actually contributing and the campaign evolving according to how users were building it,'' says Federman.
"There was a tremendous ability for people to find a place that they could be heard and were listened to and not stifled by the image of the `central campaign.' ''
Beyond Facebook, there are other examples of Canadian politicians experimenting with the Internet. Several parties maintain blogs or audio podcasts on their websites, or have posted clips to popular video-sharing websites such as YouTube.
