December 31, 2004
Best ePolitics Moments of 04
I think these stories qualify for some of the best ePolitics moments of 2004.
In no particular order:
- Kerry Smashes Every Online Fundraising Record - $5.7 million in 24 hours, 82 million total online
- Iraqi Bloggers Run For Office - campaigning and fundraising online, not to mention internationally
- Online Political Ads Finally Get A little Respect, with science to back it up
- Rathergate Makes Mainstream Pee Its Pants
- Bloggers Get Invited to Democratic and Republican Conventions
- Just Like Chocolate, Swiss Perfect Online Voting
- OhMyNews Ignites Citizens Journalism In South Korea, transforming politics and society
- PoliticsOnline Launches Buzz Webster - ok, maybe not best moment, but it was a moment
For More - Tech Central Station Lists The Top Ten Weblog Moments of '04.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 30, 2004
The Internet Has A Heart
From various Tsunami related articles:
"We are in the middle of a fundamental shift from mass media to the personal media of computers and the Internet, and charitable giving is a logical progression."
- Paul Saffo, director of the Silicon Valley-based Institute for the Future.
"Technology has had a huge impact on our ability to disseminate information about what we're doing."
- Kara Bunte, Red Cross spokeswoman.
"This flow of news from one man in the street to another certainly fosters a spirit of community, where any bit of news is better than no news."
- Tan, a blogger and former copywriter in Malaysia.
"Basically, society's response to disaster relief is being changed fundamentally by the Internet."
- John Hartman, vice president of client services for Kintera.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 29, 2004
Tsunami Disaster
The Tsunami in South-East Asia has captured my heart and attention for the past few days.
Below is some of the best information I have gathered on the disaster. PoliticsOnline will publish a special report tomorrow on the impact the internet is having on the relief effort.
Eyewitness accounts
Boobax Streamcast TV (http://bstn.free.fr/start_en.htm)
Relief
Red Cross ( http://www.icrc.org/home.nsf/home/webfamilylinks(poundsign)a9
Relief Web (http://www.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf)
World Vision (http://www.kintera.org/site/pp.asp?c=fvKVLbMVIwG&b=277262 )
News and Posts
SEA-EAT Blog (http://tsunamihelp.blogspot.com)
Phuket Disaster Message Board (http://www.p-h-u-k-e-t.com/forum)
BBC Asia Quake Disaster: (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/world/2004/asia_quake_disaster/default.stm)
Lonely Planet (http://www.lonelyplanet.com/)
The Guardian (http://www.guardian.co.uk/tsunami/0,15671,1380306,00.html)
Posted by Buzz Webster at 06:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 28, 2004
What Made 2004 Worth Remembering
We’re collecting the top ePolitics stories for 2004. Any suggestions?
Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 27, 2004
2005 Here We Come!
After a week off to celebrate Christmas, Buzz is rested and ready for another year of blog-o-rama.
During the week we’ll be looking at the best of 2004 and what’s to come in 2005.
For a little introduction on what was hot in 2004, below you’ll find three links to articles covering the gamut of sacred e-mail lists, persuasive games, and bundled online contributions:
Kerry's 2.7-Million E-mail List
Online Games Play With Politics
When Technology Became Cool Again
Posted by Buzz Webster at 04:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 17, 2004
Mapping Out Your Virtual Real Estate
In the wired world of politics, pushing your ‘product’ is a lesson in real estate. The location you place your product matters, almost as much as the product. Below are three examples, of online campaigns in progress you might learn some lessons from, with these folks who are in the process of figuring it out.
Yahoo! Nabs JibJab: Political Satire Meets Product Placement
Dave Pell writes hat the open source web browser, has been upstaged by the open source ad campaign. “Today's NY Times features a 2 page Firefox ad that features, and was paid for, by thousands of people who use and/or helped to build the product.”
Henry Copeland On Lessons Learned From A Local Blog-Ad Campaign In Atlanta
Toby Bloomberg, Atlanta's leading blog evangelist, has been working with one of her clients to test Blogads. The small test wasn't a raging success. Toby has blogged the experience, and I've added some thoughts in her comments. I'll repeat them here to have a copy secure for my own reference.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
December 16, 2004
Iraq, Iran, Iblog
As far as I know, the upcoming Iraqi Elections will be the first time in world history when foreigners can legally give online donations to campaigns, possibly impacting the outcome.
There is a lot to be said about this, but for now I’ll leave you with the latest pulled from James Taranto’s Best of the Web:
Cole Cash
A blogger called Juan Cole has declared a jihad against the Ali brothers, who run the pro-democracy Iraq the Model blog. (For more about them, read Daniel Henninger's Friday column, which describes their visit to The Wall Street Journal last week.) Cole claims the Alis "are far out of the mainstream of Iraqi opinion," and he endorses instead an anonymous anti-American blogress who uses the handle "Riverbend."
Relying on a zany conspiracy-mongering post from an unknown blog with an appealing name, Cole engages in some fevered speculation:
The MR posting brings up questions about the Iraqi brothers who run the IraqTheModel site. It points out that the views of the brothers are celebrated in the right-leaning weblogging world of the US, even though opinion polling shows that their views are far out of the mainstream of Iraqi opinion. It notes that their choice of internet service provider, in Abilene, Texas, is rather suspicious, and wonders whether they are getting some extra support from certain quarters. . . .
The phenomenon of blog trolling, and frankly of blog agents provocateurs secretly working for a particular group or goal and deliberately attempting to spread disinformation, is likely to grow in importance. It is a technique made for the well-funded Neoconservatives, for instance, and I have my suspicions about one or two sites out there already.
This has set off quite a kerfuffle, with blogger Jeff Jarvis calling Cole "pond scum." We're not sure about that (though Jarvis makes a pretty compelling case), but what we do know is that Cole is far out of the mainstream of American opinion, as evidenced by the result of last month's election. Cole might want to look into whether he himself is getting some extra support from certain quarters.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 15, 2004
Is Santa A Dem or GOP: ePolitics Buzz
Things haven’t been the same online since Ebenezer Scrooge fired Bob Cratchit and replaced him with a computer. Here are two guaranteed ways to not spread holiday cheer.
Where Will You Do Your Holiday Shopping/Politicking
Would you refuse to shop at store if you knew the owner had different political views than you? According to MenaFN.com two Internet Web sites called Choose the Blue and Buy Blue are urging despondent Democrats to make purchases from companies supporting their party.
Starting Static On T.V.
The L.A. Times reports that a coalition of liberal political groups (including MoveOn.org) launched a nationwide protest against Sinclair Broadcast Group yesterday, charging that the 62-station TV broadcaster, which was also the target of intense criticism during the presidential campaign, is misusing public airwaves with partisan news programming.
Today Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. commentator Mark Hyman responded by saying, “As soon as MoveOn.org allows me to use their e-mail lists and post to their Web site, maybe then we will have a conversation.” MoveOn is sure to respond with arguments outlining the differences between public and private broadcasting using words such as “responsibility” and “fair”. Sinclair will then respond, also outlining the differences between public and private broadcasting using words such as “choice” and “freedom.”
The anti-Sinclair campaign is run through SinclairAction.com.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 12:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 13, 2004
What Color Is Your Parachute: ePolitics Buzz
It’s all about the J-O-B these days, or at least for this post anyway.
What's Eating Gilmor Grape
Dan Gilmor - journalist turned ambassador of Blogistan, has retired from the old media on a quest for the ultimate citizens journalism project. The blogoshpere congratulates you for having the cajones to try this new venture.
Click Here To Enlarge Text
The future of e-democracy lies in our past. Clickz reports that young people largely drove the early stages of Internet growth in the U.S. But in the last four years, most new growth in Web adoption came from people aged 55 and up. Here’s a new job, selling the internet to the huge online market of aging baby boomers.
Welcome To The Club
Jo Lee will be joining the team of bloggers at BuzzWebster.com. To learn a little more about how wonderful she is visit Citizen Speak.
If Hitler Had An Email List
"If Hitler had an email list and some online tools - yeah, we'd be speaking a different language now,” said Zach Exley, the online communications chief for the Kerry-Edwards campaign, at a recent Harvard ePolitics Conference pointing out that the tools can be used for evil as well as good purposes. Luckly Zach has a job with MoveOn.org, which he quit temporarily to work with Kerry. I wonder what Ghandi would have done with an email list, assuming he had the internets and all.
Uh Senator, May I Use You As A Reference
The blog 'Unemployed Kerry Staffer' received it’s 15 minutes of fame last week while curiosity arose over the bloggers identity. Though now unmasked, she humbly continues on... still unemployed.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 06:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 10, 2004
Its Late, Go Home
A couple points of interest before the weekend.
2004 Dot-Comedy Award Nominees
About.com is proud to announce the nominees their 5th annual awards competition recognizing the year's best political humor. Cast your votes today. Winners will be announced on Dec. 29.
Warning! The Internet May Be Hazardous To Your Health
Ok, so yesterday we learned that laptops can cause infertility. Great. Well, just to add water to the half empty glass, here's some news from the WaPo about those nifty wireless gadgets you love to use.
" Are you a Blackberry addict? Do you find yourself zapping text messages and staying plugged in on your cell, computer and PDA at all hours? Experts are now advising that people unplug from the Internet and other technology devices. The Associated Press reported on the unplugging trend: "As technology's influence in the lives of young people becomes ever greater, a few teens and twentysomethings are unplugging -- getting away from the Internet and other high-tech gadgets, at least for a while. It's a backlash, experts say, to being hyper-accessible by e-mail, instant message, cell phone calls and text messages. People are spending more and more time in front of a computer screen or futzing with technological devices. Sometimes, they just need a timeout." "
Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
December 09, 2004
Silicon Valley Conspiracy
Researchers have uncovered a Silicon Valley conspiracy originating in the early 1990’s, when computer scientist allegedly (and secretively) designed portable machines as a means of birth control without FDA approval. Let’s just say I hope your not reading this news on your laptop. In the lyrics of Elvis, “Lord Almighty, I feel my temperature rising!”
But the real hot potato on the web is an article by CBSNews.com chief political writer, David Paul Kuhn, who appears to be concerned either because bloggers have no ethics or because they are not regulated. Must re-read for more understanding. For a rebuttal to Mr. Kuhn click here. For a funny version of Mr. Kuhn’s article click here. For a mystery link, click here.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 08, 2004
Moore Of The Same: ePolitics Buzz Brief
We’re all over the charts today with random facts you can use to impress your net-savvy friends and family.
MerryChristmasMichaelMoore.com launches just in time, with a conservative Holiday tune (You’ll need QuickTime for the full effect).
Terminator 4 - Davis Goes Postal
First he was recalled, then he was used by Yahoo!, now he’s being drafted. It seems that Gray Davis just might be a contender for the DNC chair, or at least a new blog hopes so.
I’m from Califor.. er, uh Canada
An American t-shirt company based in New Mexico has a solution for their fellow citizens who want to holiday in Europe without having to answer questions about US politics – pose as Canadians. For $25, t-shirtking.com offers the “Go Canadian” package, full of just the kind of things an American traveler needs to leave their country and its politics behind.
Good news for political blogs
Henry Copeland, founder of an Internet company that sells advertising across hundreds of Weblogs, has told Business Week Online that business is good. BlogAds is placing ads on as many as 100 blogs a day, he told. Six months ago, he placed ads for only 10 companies on 20 blogs.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 02:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 07, 2004
Virtual Vernacular
We know the Internet is changing society when it begins to impact the words we use, or think we shouldn’t. The biggest word of the year was obviously “blog,” which I’m sure you read was named Word of the Year for 2004 by The Merriam-Webster Dictionary. But what you might not have read are the stories behind some other popular words on the web.
Fair And Balanced - According to News Hounds, in December, 2003, Alternet, and its parent organization, the Independent Media Institute filed a cancellation Petition with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office asserting that the phrase "fair and balanced" is "notoriously misdescriptive" (i.e. not accurate at all) and that Fox should not be allowed to retain it as a trademark.
Master/Slave - According to Reuters, the computer term "master/slave," which was banned as racially offensive by a Los Angeles County purchasing department, was named the most politically incorrect term of the year on Thursday.
Monkeyfishing - The term has entered the language as a synonym for excessive credulity on the part of a newsgathering organization taken in by a patently phony story - as in, "The New York Times printed tons of Jayson Blair's monkeyfishing before it caught him at it." This explanation and the next two were pulled from an excellent article out of the Press Herald.
Jumping The Shark - Came to mean any wildly excessive activity designed to attract attention to a person or group in a popularity tailspin. As, for example, "Aging poptart Britney Spears finally jumped the shark by marrying a high school friend for two days in Las Vegas."
Pajamahadeen - a typical blogger as a guy sitting in his living room in his pajamas writing what he thinks. Pajamahadeen spun off "mujahadeen," a term for the Muslim holy warriors who kicked the Soviet Union out of Afghanistan (I think the words “pajama journalist” rolls off the tongue a little better, but who am I to stand in the way of progress.).
Libel - A recent article from the Dallas News reminds bloggers to watch the words they use. Bloggers are now considered publishers by most, and can be sued for libel.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Votes, Bits & Bytes
This week, the Berkman Center at Harvard Law School will bring together political experts, activists, academics, bloggers, and interested citizens to discuss the effect of the internet on politics. The conference will take a skeptical look at the state of politics after the 2004 election and from an international perspective. Panels will focus on questions like:
- Has "citizenship" changed in the online era?
- Are online business models helpful guides for politics and politicalorganizing?
- What international examples are promising?
- Did the web make a difference in the 2004 election?
The conference will take place December 9-11, 2004, at Harvard Law School.
Visit the conference website to learn more about the schedule of events and speakers.
Confirmed guests include Prof. Robert Putnam, author of Bowling Alone; Esther Dyson, Editor of CNet; Oh Yeon-ho, Creator of OhMyNews (South Korea); Craig Newmark, Founder of Craigslist.org; and many others. Registration is now open and free to the public, but spaces are filling quickly. Reserve your spot today.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 06, 2004
Benrik Sends Message To Bin Laden
From New Ratings:
Benrik, today released a videotape they have sent to Osama Bin Laden for Christmas via Al-Jazeera. The video contains a Christmas message to Mr Bin Laden urging him to change his life with the help of the book.
"Why should Osama Bin Laden be able to send the West videotapes but not the other way round? We hope that this message of peace reaches him and that our life-changing diary helps him mend his ways in 2005," said Benrik, the authors of the anarchic book "This Diary Will Change Your Life."
The video is posted at http://www.benrik.co.uk/content/osama.asp
Notes to editor: anarchic authors Benrik interfere in world politics on a regular basis. They were behind the www.globalvote2004.org website which received over 1,000,000 visitors in November of this year, and caused a storm of protest in the US by allowing non-Americans a virtual vote in the presidential election.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 05:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
FW: Kofi Rocks
Last week I wrote that talk of ousting Kofi Annan was flooding the blogosphere. But, by the end of the week the tables had turned and the internet was being used to rally support behind him.
According to Sify News more than 2,700 staff members of the UN Secretariat have signed an email expressing their support for Secretary-General Kofi Annan at a time when the organization has faced allegations about its integrity.
On the other side, Move America Forward has been targeting the UN for sometime with it’s “Get the UN out of the Us” campaign. Along with T.V. ads the group has launched an online petition of its own calling for the U.N. to move its facilities out of the US, along with the US reducing its funding.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 01:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 03, 2004
Honor Thy WebMaster
2004 is coming to a close, which means a few hundred “best of” award ceremonies will soon commence. I know of three “best of’s” in the world of ePolitics always worth paying attention to and or competing in.
We invite you to nominate your favorite sites for About.com's 5th annual awards competition saluting the year's best political humor. Nominees will be announced on Dec. 10, at which point you will be able to cast your votes. Winners will be announced on Dec. 29.
The American Association of Political Consultants (AAPC) has made the Call for Entries for the 2005 Pollie Awards, the deadline is Wednesday, December 22, 2004. The 2005 Pollies will recognize the best in political communications from the 2004 election cycle. The Pollies recognize a variety of mediums, and includes 27 categories that fall under the Internet.
The Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet at The George Washington University's Graduate School of Political Management will present Golden Dot Awards for civic excellence in online campaigning at the 2005 Politics Online Conference, March 10-11, 2205.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
December 02, 2004
Trippi, Kofi, And Bushy
In the past 72 hours the WSJ has printed two articles that have controlled the blogoshpere topics of the day. One very World Wide related, and the other very Web related.
Yesterday it was Democratic Strategist Joe Trippi’s “The Grassroots Can Save Democrats”. And today it’s Senator Norm Coleman’s ‘Kofi Annan Must Go.’ Although the WSJ is a paid content website, these articles are actually free.
Also for a free e-newsletter on politics with a conservative point of view, try Best of the Web Today By James Taranto.
Below is a very funny blurb on ePolitics Taranto included in yesterday’s email.
Bush Arrested?
Google News is a great site, offering an extremely useful search function that finds news stories published on the Internet within the past 30 days. The other delightful thing about it is its automatically generated homepage headlines. If you want to know what the top stories are, you're better off going to a news site that has an actual human editor... but some of the stuff that makes its way through Google's algorithms can be a source of high hilarity.
Example: A left-wing site called Axis of Logic published a satirical (though unfunny) article yesterday titled "Canadians Authorities Arrest U.S. President Bush on War Charges," and it ended up as Google's top story. Seriously. If you don't believe us, click here.
And for the plug, WSJ can send a check to my home or office address.
Posted by Buzz Webster at 10:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
