PBS' Frontline started an online trading game called "Presidential Market 2004" that allows players to build virtual "portfolios" by trading shares of "stock" in the major 2004 presidential candidates. Players bet on the likelihood that a candidate's "share price" will go up or down at any given time. (No actual money changes hands here). "In other words, Presidential Market 2004 is not a poll or a popularity contest -- this is not the place to pump your favorite candidate -- it is a simulated futures market in which only the shrewdest political analysts, and the shrewdest traders, will come out ahead," PBS says.
This being PBS, of course, the broader aim is to "provide a thought-provoking and engaging way to stoke Americans' interest in the presidential candidates, the issues, and the electoral process," the Frontline Web site says. Players with the highest-valued portfolios on Election Day win a trip to the inauguration in Washington, D.C.
By the way, George Bush was the market leader as of 11:30 ET, selling at $550 a share.
Shares