After all the hype that surrounded the Obama campaign, I never really thought what the implications his e-tactics would have on his presidency. And then, as soon as the election was over – article after article surfaced the Web, outlining the plans for the White House 2.0.
I cannot remember (or have not studied) a time in history when the public was this engaged in any political event. I attribute this partially to the dynamic of this election in particular but mostly to the number of technology outlets that made it so easy for people to stay attuned to the issues, recent news and important events.
For some reason I assumed the Obama videos, text messages, blogs and daily emails were about to end with his victory. He already raised half a billion online.
It seems however these e-successes are only the beginning. His team is amazing. We all know by now that Obama plans to address the nation once a week via YouTube – I really like the headline because it defines what is now an integral role for the Obama team – and it is completely driven by technology:
“Obama appoints YouTube (Google) as secretary of video”
Sure, it’s a joke, but video – mobile video especially – is one tool among many that will redefine politics as we know it. Personally, I think it is fascinating and I am eager to see how sites such as change.gov, democrats.org, whitehouse.gov and mybarackobama.com will keep the public informed on issues that are important to them – the tools can do anything from, as Kevin Thurman notes, communicating breaking news, legislation and even getting holiday cards out.
The brilliance behind Obama’s Web tactics will be difficult to surpass. Some may consider technology, or the use of technology, a bit intrusive. I think however, if Obama can successfully use Web tools to organize groups of supporters online, inspire youth to be informed and attuned to issues and ultimately, keep democracy alive with an open, shared government – I’ll take a few extraneous emails any day.
