The political process is inherently social. From the legendary smoke-filled rooms of Washington to local town hall meetings where issues are discussed and candidates sized up, politicians have always relied on spurring word of mouth in social networks to get out the vote.

The Internet has played an increasing role in the political process in recent years, with significant fund raising taking place on the Web, and candidates taking their message directly to constituents through blogs and video (both official and accidental) on sharing sites like YouTube.

Now, reality TV heavyweight Mark Burnett ("Survivor" and Trump's "The Apprentice") is teaming up with one of the world's biggest online social networks -- MySpace -- for a new reality endeavor focused on the political process.

The new effort -- "Independent" -- is designed to help engage younger audiences typically less involved in the political process by allowing anyone to declare their candidacy for a political post. Individuals can throw their hat into the ring by submitting a short stump speech on MySpace Video, receiving nearly instant feedback from other MySpace users.

The online component will be linked up with a television program (network still TBD, but a fair chance FOX will pick it up) and viewers will determine the issues candidates should address via weekly voting. The winner of the competition scores $1 million for their campaign war chest.

While it's hard to imagine a MySpace-spawned candidate could break into the closed circles of politics in the US today, "Independent" is an interesting way to engage voters of the future and empower them to get involved in the political process.

One has to believe that Republican and Democratic strategists will keep a close eye on the process to learn what's working and what falls short in social campaigning online.