Social activism

New Web site proposes creating congressional legislation online

Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the second ranking Democrat in the U.S. Senate leadership, has opened the virtual doors of law writing to Internet citizens. This is a compelling idea as the Internet continues to find ways to democratize information and support the flattening of the political process in our country.

The senator writes in OpenLeft.com, the new project hosting this:

"Today I'm writing to invite you to participate in an experiment--an interactive approach to drafting legislation on one of the most significant public policy questions today: What should be America's national broadband strategy?"… Read more

Hype or hope? CNN-YouTube debates make a splash

CNN and YouTube have created a virtual town hall for the Democratic and Republican candidates for president. (Well, the questioners will be there virtually; the Democratic candidates will be sitting in a CNN studio in Charleston, South Carolina and the Republicans will be in Florida for theirs.) It's been quite extraordinary to watch the lead up to this and the grand attention it's been getting. But is this event, touted even in the venerable New York Times as a "first of a new kind of political debate" truly something new or is it simply an interesting, … Read more

Campaign 2008: Small Internet donations add up

Small donors are having a significant impact on the amount of money that the Republican and Democratic candidates for president are raising. The Internet, providing the tools for grassroots activists to self-organize and conduct "p-commerce" by giving political money online, has clearly contributed to this.

The interesting story after six months of presidential fund-raising is that some candidates, notably Barack Obama, are doing much better at reaching small donors than others.

In a July 3 CNET post on what the Internet has done for presidential campaign fund-raising, I wrote, "the story technophiles should celebrate and fear how … Read more

Blogger Civility? One Leading Blogger Offers Standards

Personal and public civility matters everywhere. It's why you don't burp at the dinner table or take showers in public. It's why you say "please" and "thank you" and, if you're Southern-born like I am, you say "yes, sir" and "yes, ma'am" when spoken to by your elders.

The blogosphere is still the wild, wild west, and sometimes personal and public civility don't seem to be part of the new culture. But it's increasingly becoming a part of the self-policing that bloggers are getting better … Read more

What the Internet Has Wrought: Presidential Fundraising '00, '04, '08

As the Republican & Democratic presidential candidates report their fundraising numbers after two quarters, there are lots of stories to tell. What's one of the really amazing stories? It's not that Clinton the Democratic "frontrunner" raised about $10 million less than Obama the "challenger" in the last three months or that McCain the Republican "frontrunner" is in third place in fundraising for his party. (Well, those are pretty neat.) The story technophiles should celebrate and fear is how the Internet has enabled such an extraordinary, incredible, surprising increase in dollars collected compared … Read more

Do political bloggers matter? Of course not, except when they do

To hear them tell it, they are the base of the political parties who have the power to elevate and destroy. To hear their detractors talk about it, they are know-nothing brats with a keyboard. The political blogosphere has come a long way, baby. But it's still the new kid on the block, wanting desperately to fit in but being shut out by all the self-styled cool kids that were on the playground first.

Just ask a political blogger, probably a white guy, over-educated, higher-than-average income, and in his late 30s. Fueled by technology-enhanced testosterone, these folks see themselves … Read more