Wednesday, November 19, 2003

I'm going to be in Chapel Hill tomorrow morning to talk about weblogs at the journalism school, but I won't have time to stick around for lunch with Eric Muller, who says there's something rotten in city politics. 3:22:55 PM    comment []

The Dean campaign announces a "Mousepads to Shoeleather Summit," a multi-day, multi-city series of meetings to discuss grassroots organizing. Campaign manager Joe Trippi, organizing guru Zephyr Teachout, and other senior staffers will be there to meet with volunteers. The name comes from a line in Dean's announcement speech, when he called his campaign one of "mousepads, shoeleather, and hope." Note the preposition in the title. Mousepads To Shoeleather. The whole idea is to get people active in the real world. 2:40:50 PM    comment []

Elizabeth Edwards was at Carolina with Howard Dean's late brother, Charlie, who died in Laos in 1974. She writes at the Edwards campaign blog: "He was in the class after mine, in my dorm, and in a number of same the activist Democratic groups. He was a fine young man of principle and energy, humor and passion. His death in 1974 was a tremendous loss for his family, his friends, and his country. The recovery of what appear to be, what we hope are his remains is a blessing. I know all of our supporters join us as we wish the Dean family every measure of peace that this discovery can afford them." 2:29:59 PM    comment []

Jay Rosen says good things about the Dean case study. He also sounds a warning: "Prepare for the 'nothing really new here' articles to come. Prepare for savvy analysts in the press who will be out to de-excite." It's important to understand what's new and what isn't. Grassroots organizing is not new. Using the Internet to do it is a step forward. Giving up control so the grassroots have power of their own is the leap forward. The Internet is not just the new television. It is more than an upgrade to direct mail. As I wrote in next Sunday's newspaper column, interactivity means more than the ability to click on an online survey, or even give money. It's about putting people to work, and letting them think for themselves. 11:15:35 AM    comment []