What is Digg?57 Comments
- JShope, on 10/12/2007, -1/+17If only the politicians would listen when the technical Whizzes with some life experience would tell them about the issues.
I guess that's why they're using Kids. - roguepixel, on 10/12/2007, -3/+16Kind of a good idea, seems to me majority of politicians don't really grasp the concepts of certain technologies so they keep trying force detrimental bills through that piss all over people like us. Actually getting a clue might swing things around to our benefit
- strictnein, on 10/12/2007, -2/+15Skiing in the dormetories and making large quantities of popcorn.
- jesusphreak, on 10/12/2007, -3/+14Actually isn't it the nerds working for the politicians in this situation?
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12So where is Val Kilmer when you need him?
- Beanlover, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10Problem is this isn't them getting a clue...this is them paying those with a clue to make it appear they have a clue.
What really needs to happen is these folks getting replaced by those with a clue. Hopefully, once the masses are used to getting their info about candidates online instead of relying on stupid campaign ads on TV, this will allow more qualified candidates with smaller "warchests" to get their name and platforms out in front of eyeballs. - superkendall, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5I don't think this is quite right:
"Things that you can see and hear make a much greater impact than just reading," says Ellen Qualls, Warner's communications director. "Video of the governor is a much more powerful tool than simply an e-mail or blog post from him."
To me I'd say that on the web, words have more impact than a simple video alone can. Video is something to amuse yourself with and pass the time, while words are more seriously considered and thought about... which is why blogs have taken off so quickly.
Video is an important component to be sure in getting across to voters that you are a real person, but as far as helping someone decide to vote for you or not - the more words, and the more real those words are - the better. - IMnotCIA, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5I'd like to agree, but having spent a good portion of my life in politics (and running campaigns), I have to say that people want to "see" what the candidate looks like. It humanizes them and allows voters to relate to (and identify) candidates.
Plus, posts on a blog could have been written by someone other than the candidate (and most likely are). But video shows the candidate themselves speaking (even though someone else wrote the words and they probably filmed 20 takes...)
Remember, this is a popularity contest, and God forbid we judge someone just by what they say, we need to see them too. - cresquin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2That sucks, I've written Sens. Boxer and Feinstein and Rep. Waxman (CA) about 3 times each over the last year by email and each time I got a reply back concerning the issue I was discussing after about a week. Fortunately, the issues I supported actually were in-line with their positions, and they welcomed the support.
Additionally I wrote my Congress People when I lived in WA and got replys back (On paper even!) two friendly and one (my rep) who disagreed with my position and explained why.
I really don't expect anything I write to actually sway the opinion of a congress person, but I figure their staff keeps a tally sheet with the number of letters recieved on each side of an issue. - sleepless, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Senator Barack Obama for the great state of Illinois does his own podcast. It is worth a listen.
http://obama.senate.gov/podcast/ - jesusphreak, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5A large portion of our society has a third-grade reading level or lower. Are you sure more words = better for those people?
- AnotherTechie, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Correct me if I am wrong, but I didn't think that bloggger + podcaster = whizkid? I guess it doesn't take much to impress people today...
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I disagree. The most effective form of communication is face to face dialog. It's the most meaningful and effective as you get to see gestures, facial expressions, and tone along with those words (there's a reason why you don't ask someone out on a date over AIM). Video can retain most of the communication cues while written words cannot.
What written words have the advantage of doing is being cheap, clearest for technical information, and easiest to format in a structure that makes it easy for someone looking for a specific set of information in a large record to find it quickly.
However when it comes to politicians, you want the video so that you can judge their character as well. Ideally everyone would meet with their candidate representatives in person but since that's impossible, honest video interviews are the next best thing. - confluence, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3My eeeeyyyyyes!
"Whiz kids" should not be used. Ever. This term, like "boffin", is an annoying, cutesy way for the mainstream media to refer to "smart people who know about maths and computers and stuff" (you know, unlike *normal* people, tee-hee!) and it grates. Urgh.
In addition to this, it looks like the writer of the article spent all of five minutes researching "hip intarweb lingo" to include in the article, came away with one word (lol) and proceeded to use it in an awkward and contrived way in two places. It's like watching TV commercials which are aimed at young teenagers, and invariably written by adults who are about twenty years behind on the way children actually talk to each other (and wouldn't dare to include any commonly used rude words).
While I was reading the rest of the article, I couldn't help wondering how many of these politicians are actually interested in communicating with their constituents more, and how many are thinking "Yo, yo, yo, what up, young internet person! LOL!! Check out my l33t blog! I am totally down with young web-surfing persons like you! (Vote for me)". - lane.montgomery, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Forget about new technology, I'd be happy if my representatives responded to a signed and faxed letter that I actually typed out myself instead of copying from the EFF.
I sent the same letter to Sen. Stabenow, Sen. Levin, and Rep. Schwarz with zero response from any of them.
They wonder why we have such a low opinion of our representatives once they are elected. All I hear about is organized campaign contributions and big lobbying groups and I can't even muster a form letter response from an aid on the rep's position on an issue.
Honestly, do you Aussies, Brits, or Canadians have to put up with this too in your systems? I think I might be on the verge of aquiring a new accent. - gekkokid, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2whiz kids should be used for only 12 year olds that have made 20 billion $
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4I can't wait to see the horrid HTML MySpace accounts of the politicians on board for using kids for this crap.
- superkendall, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Why not? A politicians blog should be a palce where I can go and get details on what they guy is going, along with explainations of what has been done in the past. I'd like to see a comment on every vote explaining why they voted for or against something, and they better have some good reasons rather than just playing "follow the party".
Even if it's PR approved material there still should be something of substance you could find to get positions, if not then it's not really a blog but a commercial and will just be ignored anyway. - bkool, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2I'm 23 and work at a consulting firm. When I get sent to a client they immediately think of me as a kid. It doesn't help that I look 19. I learned to deal with the 'Wow, you're so young' comments. It takes a couple weeks before they realize I know my stuff.
I hate age 'prejudice' in the corporate world. You may have less experience but it doesn't mean you're stupid. - chadell, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3I have been blogging for politicians for a while now. Translating long boring transcripts into blogging language is a challenge. To top it you are required to attend hours of monotonous meetings. Political blogging is very boring.
- gimlik, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Why are "adults" in their twenties considered "kids?"
Some people still call me a "kid" at 23. Doesn't offend me, but just makes me wonder. Why do those certain people still see a young adult as a kid? - SmoothHeavy, on 10/12/2007, -1/+230 is the new 21, maybe that's it.
- richardtallent, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I set up a blog for a local mayoral candidate I met through a friend. He was excited about the blog at first, but I never got a single word out of him to post to it, I ended up with two posts copied and pasted from his press releases for the entire campaign. Frickin' waste of time, and most of the public is too illiterate to visit a blog anyway.
- redneckblues, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Like DRM?
:{ - mirunit, on 10/12/2007, -5/+5Fully agree with you on that point.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -4/+4Most of us don't buy the crap politicians say in the paper and on TV. You think we going to voluntarily go to a blog's website for carefully scripted statements written by the same speech writers and PR guys?
- lane.montgomery, on 10/12/2007, -5/+5Actually assuming you are from the US, the average reading level is more like 8th grade. But your point is taken.
- IMnotCIA, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3Best way to have your correspondence read: attach a check...
- miller9time, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1No...here's some reading for you.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_English_homographs - bkool, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3Now they just need some hot female campaign volunteers to speak on their video podcasts and we are set!
- dclowd9901, on 10/12/2007, -5/+5To put the kabash on the reading-level argument: Newspapers, as a standard, write for the 6th grade reading level. Period.
- redneckblues, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3You must be new here. The proper term is "Wii".
- fr34k5h0w, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2Hmm... I'm thinking of a president. His most prominent initial is pronounced "dubyah" and he attempts to use an iPod and announces what songs he has on it. Can anyone help me out here on this one?
- OBKenobi, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Yes, that would be all well and good, only if it wasn't politicians doing the "outreaching."
- OBKenobi, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1No, like Bittorrent!nnhttp://bushtorrent.com/
- superkendall, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I've always got responses back from my Colorado senators and house members, even when they did not nessicarily agree with my stance on something (or in fact even seemingly understood my point - I blame staffers for that though).
I'm not sure a response really means anything, though it's nice to see - it's pretty much always a topical form letter as far as I've seen. - rasterbator, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1New Title:
Politicians Find New Ways to Warp Young Minds - spadin, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1You should be offended because when it comes down to making any decisions they'll ignore your input because you're just a "kid"
- superkendall, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0If the reading level of the general populace is low, then it seems to me that providing more well-written content is a way to help raise the bar, so to speak...
I agree to some extent it's a popularity contest but people looking at a canditates materials online are going to be looking for more than a soundbyte, which they can get from TV commercials.
The interactive video Q&A aspects mentioned in the article sound like a great idea though in terms of getting a message across to visitors. - edto, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2It's always nice to see politicians adapting and embracing new technologies :)
- jesusphreak, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1And newspaper subscriptions continue to fall....nnPeople honestly are becoming more and more detatched from reading. It sucks, but its how things are going currently.
- dclowd9901, on 10/12/2007, -7/+6Miller, you're not very funny at parties, are you.
- strictnein, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1"I'd be happy if my representatives responded to a signed and faxed letter"
Send an actual letter addressed from your home or place of work (assuming that you actually vote for/against this person). - dclowd9901, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3WTF is with the downdigging? Do people digg you down for giving relevant facts now? Or has digg finally been overrun by the kiddies?
- pairanoyd, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2Just goes to prove the fact that all politicians are scum, bottom feeders, leaches and parasites.
- mrteacup, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0Turntables? These 20-somethings look like they are pretty familiar with turntables: http://www.geocities.com/aleksandar_marin/bg-tiesto.jpg
- wired4u, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2Maybe they should start a podcast called kill everyone for oil nation
- tritium, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Just stating for the record, that the "Wii" comment was hilarious -- I don't often laugh out loud at Digg comments, but that one was great. Well done!
- miller9time, on 10/12/2007, -10/+8Yet another reason why computer nerds will someday rule the world!
"Be nice to nerds, you will probably work for one someday" - lexi, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0I suppose blogs are just another channel for outreach. It was only a matter of time, political blogging is getting wider recognition, see http://neversforpresident.blogspot.com/
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