Politics And Local Blogs

H/T to Stuart O'Neill at Political Dogfight for hipping me to this article from Politics and Technology about local political blogs:

It seems that everyone is talking about blogs these days, but much of the coverage is all about the big national blogs that get millions of hits. But for most political campaigns, it's the local blogs that can make a big difference - generating buzz, finding donors and volunteers, and driving media coverage.

Though it may seem self-interested, I agree with the article's assessment. The local MSM simply isn't covering local politics as comprehensively and with the detail that the politically-interested segment of the population desires.  Hence, that demographic will increasingly turn to local blogs like this one for that kind of information.

Comments

[Len Kranser]

Jubal writes: "For most political campaigns, it's the local blogs that can make a big difference - generating buzz, finding donors and volunteers, and driving media coverage."

"Though it may seem self-interested, I agree with the article's assessment," he writes.

Jubal and I don't seem to agree on airport related issues but we do see eye to eye on the Internet's role in local politics.

But the world of local political activism on the Internet goes back much further than the relatively recent popularity of blogs. When I wrote my book, "Internet for Activists" in 2002, I added a couple of paragraphs about weblogs or blogs describing them as new terms rather than new ideas.

After all, by 2002, the El Toro Info Site www.eltorairport.org had been banging away at the El Toro Airport project nearly every day for six years. We reached, and still reach tens of thousands of people each month.

While newspaper reports, scooped from the papers' websites are part of our content, more than half of what we post is from our own research and analysis. We supply information to the print media as well as posting excerpts of their work. It's a cooperative relationship.

For example, Frank Mickadeit ran an article on November 15 titled: "Assessment puts hefty tab on El Toro battle". Mickadeit credited the El Toro Info site for developing the $150-200 million price tag for the airport fight. He referenced our site as his source at http://eltoroairport.org/issues/cost.html

Curiously, Jubal didn't run that Mickadeit piece on OC Blog.

[Jubal]

Curiously, Jubal didn't run that Mickadeit piece on OC Blog.

Alas, Len! Is my all-consuming envy of your website so glaringly transparent?

[x]

there is one glaring difference between len and most other blogs. len is very dilligent that the information is accurate and truthfull. if a radical claim is made it has to be backed up with facts. he never resorted or allowed rhetoric to make his point with his blog. len runs a very tight blog. OC blog I have noticed has "loose" standards.

[Jubal]

he never resorted or allowed rhetoric to make his point with his blog. len runs a very tight blog.

1) We're talking about the same website, right?

2) No disrespect to the El Toro Info Site, but it isn't a blog.

[x]

len has said it's a blog, a blog is a web log so? how does it not fit the description?
in your opinion please.