Quick Hits — November 17, 2008

• Obama Delivers First Democratic Video Address, with reviews (Rating Obama’s First Weekly YouTube Address) and previews: The YouTube Presidency and Obama Turns To YouTube For Weekly Broadcast. Plus, commentary/criticisms On Putting a President’s Democratic Address on Youtube, since Snazzy new technology isn’t enough to bring transparency to the White House and YouTube Fireside Chats Need to Be Interactive. The big question: Is Obama Ready To Be A Two-Way President?
• A Senior Fellow at the Institute of Nonexistence. The guy behind that “Palin thinks Africa is a country?” He’s a made-up internet person. See also The Latest in Political News Fakery.
• Under Obama, Web Would Be the Way. Predicting an electronic White House — hmmmm, some ideas sound familiar. We’re not the only ones seeing the future: see Web Video & the Obama Presidency: 10 Ways Team Obama Should Use MultiMedia for a little something about weekly radio addresses and video.
• The Future of myBO and the Future of Advocacy.
• Obama Forced to Give Up Email. Tough move for a Blackberry addict, but at least he can eat for free now at Ben’s Chili Bowl Meanwhile, Obama to Pay Bonuses to Campaign Staff — hit ’em up for a drink now, while that cash is hot in their pockets.
• The Value of a Political Lawn Sign — Too Much to Ignore.
• Australian web filter to block 10,000 internet sites, while a German Politician Blocks Local Wikipedia.
• How technology shaped the US election — report from an online politics forum at MIT that included the RNC’s Cyrus Krohn. More post-election wrap-up: Chatting about the Internet and the 2008 Elections and The Web: 2008’s winning ticket
• For a Washington Job, Be Prepared to Tell All. Embarrassing emails and blog posts come back to haunt would-be Obamans via background checks. E.politics — too scandalous for a post-Lewinsky Clinton White House — is happy to serve as patron saint of sinful job-seekers. C.f. Are You Now, or Have You Ever Been, Embarrassed Online?
• GOP Files Suit to End Ban on Unlimited Campaign Donations.
• Gay-Rights Activists Use Web to Organize Global Rally. C.f. The Growing Alliance of Dumbledore’s Army and Fifty Bucks Worth of Facebook Ads Help Turn College Junior into County Treasurer.
• Interactive Map: Electoral Explorer. Tons o’ juicy data on the elections, presented in handy visual form.
• In Israel, a Click Away From ‘Yes We Can.’ Netanyahu’s site mimic’s Obama’s down to tiny details.
• Sales of Inaugural Tickets Banned on eBay.
• Obama Team Taps Venture Capitalist And Tech Company Execs To Organize Transition, while Net Neutrality Advocates are In Charge Of Obama Team Review of FCC.
• Palin ‘Hacker’ Trial Pushed Back to May.
• Senate Democrats Warn Bush Admin Not To Destroy Records. Take your hands off that hard drive!
• U.S. Elections — It Takes a Village to monitor the vote.
• My.BarackObama.com — 2008 Game of the Year.
• Cracking the Boys Club in Web 2.0: Ten Women Pioneers of Web 2.0.
• Want To Make A Difference In The Rightosphere?
• Social Networks for Social Change.
• Over Long Campaign, Obama Videos Drew Nearly a Billion Views. At the other end of the spectrum, YouTube on a Shoestring (for Nonprofits).
• Motrin’s Pain: Viral Video Disaster C.f. 50 Steps to Establishing a Consistent Social Media Practice, via Jordan Viator.
• Online Ad Growth Grinds To A Halt.
• How Google helps track flu trends.
• Take the pain out of WYSIWYG editing.
• Campaigns and Elections to co-sponsor the next Politics Online Conference.
• Barack Obama: The 50 facts you might not know.
• PETA’s new online game — pleasantly grotesque.
• Can Storytelling and Good Online Writing Mix?
• Change.gov’s Blog Shows Signs of Feedback Loop. That howl over the PA system? An unruly mob.
• “People Are People/So Why Should It Be?” Partying the Night Away in Baghdad. Awesome, just awesome.

– cpd