Martin Johnson, on state political blogs:
This past August, the Sorensen Institute at the University of Virginia hosted what was likely the first conference of political bloggers from a single state. By November, Virginia bloggers were so prominent that they were quoted in newspapers, appeared at political forums and, in this scathing letter from Kilgore campaign manager Ken Hutcheson, blamed for election losses. State political bloggers are not like national bloggers because most of them are not just news junkies or would-be pundit, but also activists, party leaders and even elected officials as well. As such, they come into the blogosphere with some well-defined goals in mind, and don’t see a problem with using their blog to achieve that goal. Already, Tennessee bloggers are using their blog to serve as a rapid-response unit and sniping team for their candidate of choice, something that will only get worse over time.
The lesson to candidates and journalists? Keep an eye on bloggers, and maybe even reach out to them as the campaign season goes forward. You’ll likely find that they make great sources, and could, like they were in Virginia, prove to be an important factor in the race.
something that will only get worse over time.
Unlike political consultants, usually under cloak of anonymity. Lordy, what is it with these double standards???????????????????????
Not trouble using their blogs to promote their causes? First amendment much???????/
The “blogosphere” in Virginia is the manifestation of what Thomas Jefferson called “The Marketplace
of Ideas.” And those who brought forth on this continent, that new nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal, are beaming.
Martin Johnson Said:
Waldo, what are your thoughts on that section of his statement? Is that a positive or negative in your opinion? And do you think it is, or could be construed as, a slam on “national” bloggers? I mean isn’t he basically suggesting that one might be better than the other? And if so which do you think he is favoring? National or local?
:)
Martin,
The section you point out is perhaps the first tangible evidence that “Think Globally, Act Locally” is a realisitic goal. It is much easier for ordinary bloggers to be active in their local politics (they don’t have to give up their jobs, they don’t have to burn a lot of vacation). I suspect more state and local bloggers are also activists, but not all, and there are certainly examples of national bloggers who are also activists (extreme cases who took a year of sabbatical and followed specific campaigns around the country, blogging the whole way).
Why wouldn’t any blogger be proud to use his or her blog to achieve their goals? FOr some the goal is simply a journal, for others it is to express pent up feelings, and for others it is to call attention to gaping flaws in our leadership. If readers find this useful, it is extremely important. We no longer talk to each other as we walk through the town square, so getting up on a soapbox is not as effective as it used to be. Blogs replace that, very effectively.
I have the same reaction as Alice to the implied sneer. People blogging under their own names, unpaid, with comment sections, is about as transparent and accountable as it comes for political commentary and action.
What I’m curious about is this part: they make great sources, and could, [as they did] in Virginia, prove to be an important factor in the race.
What bloggers and posts do you think were an important factor in the race?
Waldo, what are your thoughts on that section of his statement? Is that a positive or negative in your opinion?
Huge positive. I don’t know that it’s a slam, I think it’s simply true. In my experience, the teeming masses on sites like DailyKos have little to no practical political experience. Clearly, the opposite is true in the Virginia blogosphere.
Regarding Martin Johnson’s “express” sneer: something that will only get worse over time.
To me that sounds very much like the national republican party position on “blogs” and “bloggers.” They loathe them (blogs and bloggers) because it’s a media outlet they cannot control or influence and which is not subject to the market ups and downs that affect traditional media outlets such as ratings, commercials, advertising sales, etc. All of which, in my opinion, give republican’s a huge advantage in those types of media outlets.
With it’s increase in popularity, and recognition by more traditional media outlets as further sources of information, Blogs are becoming a type of media outlet that challenges the ability of the republicans to “control their message” and make sure the public only hears their spin on the issues.
And that my 2 cents.
Sorry to arrive a little late to this discussion. A few things:
“something that will only get worse over time”: I don’t know the details of this, but I think the comment about Creigh Deeds that was posted on the Commonwealth Watch blog just before the election is a good example of what is to come. Karl Rove had to start whisper campaigns at law schools to get his message out, but if he were doing it today I would imagine he would start an anonymous blog and use that instead. While whisper campaigns are often difficult and depended on a supple mainstream media to disseminate the information, posting something on a blog enables it to travel more quickly. Now that people are using their blogs as advocates for candidates it’s possible that things could get out of hand quickly, and libel suits or, shudder, regulation could follow. While a national campaign can easily overshadow the bloggers, a state campaign, particularly at the early stages, can lose control of its message to the blogosphere and never get it back. While gutter politics is often part of the game, I don’t think that’s a positive for either side.
“national vs. state bloggers”: There are some national bloggers who are also activists, but I think the fact that the people on top of the national blogging heap are most likely to be journalists has set the tone for much of that dialogue. On local blogs, it’s a different story, with even the most widely read political bloggers often writing about things other than politics and talking about actually getting involved in politics as well as writing about it. In the national game, there’s so much media out there already that bloggers can easily just comment on what they see and read and get on with their day. In state and local blogs, there are just a handful of people to write about, so you end up making some of your own news and writing your opinion columns. There’s less competition from other sources, so the barrier to entry is lower.
“important factor in Virginia”: I think all the major blogs had some impact on the race. I would suspect that quick reaction to the death penalty ads forced Kaine to reply more rapidly and forcefully than he might otherwise, and the healthy interaction with the WaPo’s Michael Shear and the RT-D’s Jeff Schapiro influenced their coverage in small and large ways. At the conference in August, both said that they saw reading the blogs as part of their beat, and considering that most of the bloggers would have been just one of the hundreds or thousands of die-hard activists were it not for blogs, I think their influence on the race is clear.
Does this help? I don’t mean to discount state blogs. I just think they’re important to watch, and it won’t surprise me at all to see major campaign stories break in the blogosphere, and perhaps lawsuits to follow if candidates aren’t happy with what comes out. With national blogs, you have people entering an already crowded space (how many people were reading all the weekly political opinion magazines before blogs started?) trying to say yet even more. But, state and local blogs are entering a space where the competition is just a handful of political reporters and editorial board members, and they have the potential not just to have a voice, but dominate the conversation. This is why it’s so important to think about their effect on state and local politics.
I don’t know the details of this, but I think the comment about Creigh Deeds that was posted on the Commonwealth Watch blog just before the election is a good example of what is to come.
I’m glad that you mentioned that, Martin — I think that’s an important point. We haven’t seen a lick of the fallout that’s due to come from that incident. It’s rather a dark page in the story of the Virginia blogosphere.
Thank you for your comments, Martin.