Here in the cradle of political blogging, the local campaign weblog continues to evolve. David Hoggard, an at-large candidate for city council, started writing one earlier this month. "I want my weblog to get out my personality, who I am, what I¹m thinking," he says. "It¹s kind of like sitting and talking in a living room — that¹s my strength — a direct link to people I can¹t see directly." Tara Grubb also has a campaign weblog at www. Tarasue4U.com.
Hoggard includes links to sites that disagree with him on key issues such as the downtown ballpark. "I want to provide one portal for information, and that means putting it all up there," he says. Recently he has been discussing the FedEx hub on his blog, admitting that he¹s learning along the way. It¹s not the traditional voice of a candidate, but the voice of real person in real time.
Contrast Hoggard¹s shaggy style to that of mayoral candidate Bruce Ashley. The Greensboro attorney¹s traditional website is full of information and plans and schedules. The only thing missing is Ashley himself, who appears only in canned photos and words. For all we can tell, the difference between Ashley and incumbent Keith Holliday is the difference between skim milk and 2%.
A weblog might help differentiate Ashley from his opponents. He¹s considering one now. Go for it, Bruce, these things are powerful. Just ask Howard Dean, or his rivals.
[
