The speaker of the house is voted into the position by colleagues, while the voice President of the United States serves as President of the senate.
The public approved of Martin Van Buren because he was sticking policies similar to Andrew Jackson, the previous president. Jackson also helped campaign Buren. Buren supported lower tariffs while his opponent, the Whig Party, did not. He also advocated free trade and set up system of bonds for the national debt.
The standard is still important (arguably even more important compared to past situation) because due to the development of social media, the flow of information became extremely easy to consume.
Even though this might good for average people, we cannot deny the fact that this could also make it easier for someone who want to intentionally spread misinformation.