Governor Bill Richardson, WAYMISH?

UPDATE! A Richardson financial manager wrote me, sent a special form for overseas American contributors -- outlining several ways to contribute -- and said "call if you need me." I answered "the form's on its way" and got another positive response.

I like Bill Richardson!

Desirable Roasted Coffee is not a political blog, and only tangentially a personal one, but I'm happy to say Governor Bill Richardson is my first choice in 2008. I'll be voting for him in the primary and, I hope, in November.

But -- since 95% of the American people aren't behind me on this, and since Desirable Roasted Coffee is more about communication than politics -- let's talk about basic communication. If I could ask Bill Richardson one thing, it would be this:

WAYMISH?

"WAYMISH?" was coined a guy in my "kitchen cabinet", the great Ray Considine. "WAYMISH" means "Why Are You Making It So Hard (for me to give you my money)?" Ray, whose obsessions included celebrating great customer service with anyone in hearing, used to wonder why otherwise great brands, great restaurants, great stores fell down on the job when it came to basic "here I am... I want to pay... show me how!" customer service.

You know the drill... you go to a good restaurant (led there by good reviews)... and you wait 20 minutes before anyone takes your drink order. Or arrive at a rental car stand. You are a loyal customer... are begging them to do business with you but... no sir. Try Alamo, just down the road. These are the people you want to ask "Why are you making it so hard for me to give you my money?"

WAYMISH, Governor Richardson!

I signed up on Bill Richardson's website months ago. Checked all the boxes -- send me everything! Checked all the boxes -- I'd like to contribute! Checked all the boxes -- I'm willing to help spread the message in my area! And added that I've been active in Democratic grassroots politics since the 80s....

If you are guessing I now get a lot of mail from the Richardson campaign, you are right. And it's great stuff.

It's such good stuff, I want to give Bill my money. But I can't.

While his website's mechanics allow contributions from American citizens abroad, every attempt I've made (and those of friends) fails. OK, a little ecommerce problem, a little need to confirm identity from abroad. FEC rules; I can live with that.

So I've written the website, written the various staff people who send me mails, and even left a note on his Facebook page (yes, I know he does not run his FB page, but I hope some staff person reads it). Not a single response. And I don't want a big bear hug from the Governor, I just want someone to say "here's where to send your $500."

Why are you making it so hard for me to give you my money, Governor Richardson? I am a Democratic activist, an American citizen -- and wanting to contribute.

WAYMISH?

Technorati : bill richardson, ray considine, richardson, waymish

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 11:25pm in Communication, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (5) | TrackBack (0)

Some bloggers are journalists when they write about politics

Dandy little report from WaPo:

WASHINGTON -- DailyKos, an influential political Web site that serves as a virtual bulletin board for liberals, qualifies as a media entity exempt from federal campaign finance regulations, the Federal Election Commission said Tuesday.

The FEC said the Web site, operated by blogger Markos Moulitsas Zuniga, cannot be regulated as a political committee and can freely post blog entries that support candidates.

Conservative blogger John C.A. Bambenek had argued in a complaint last month that the site should comply with campaign finance laws because such entries amounted to "a gift of free advertising and candidate media services."

The FEC disagreed.

Hat tip to Jim Horton.

Technorati : FCC, FEC, bambenek, bloggers, campaign contribution, dailykos, political blogging

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 08:15pm in Citizen Journalism, Journalism, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (2) | TrackBack (1)

Why Web 2.0 is a godsend to poltical activists

Ethan Zuckerman describes why "banal" social media tools used mainly for entertainment are proving a boon to political activists, especially in repressive countries:

...while Web 1.0 was invented so that theoretical physicists could publish research online, Web 2.0 was created so that people could publish cute photos of their cats. But this same cat dissemination technology has proved extremely helpful for activists, who've turned these tools to their own purposes.

So while Flickr should be used for displaying pictures of cute cats, it's also proved an effective tool for avoiding keyword filtering. Activists in China are using Flickr to disseminate images that contain words that get blocked by keyword filters - a simple tool built by Zhang Erning allows a photo of Einstein at a blackboard to be annotated with arbitrary text that won't be blocked by the Chinese firewall....

Technorati : advocacy, censorship, ethan zuckerman, political activism, web 2.0 tools

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 04:36pm in Politics, Regulation, Social Media, Social Tools, Society | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0) | TrackBack (0)

Put political contributions into a blind trust?

Robert Reich's idea (well, Bruce Ackerman's) is that campaign contributors should pay into a blind trust... the candidate wouldn't know who contributed.

The best idea I've heard is from Bruce Ackerman of Yale Law School. Essentially, he wants to require that all contributions be put in blind trusts for each candidate, so candidates can use the money but cannot know who contributed what.

Living in Denmark, I've come to like short, intense, relatively unfunded elections... as an American, whose own meager contributions to party candidates are dwarfed by the sums thrown around by industry, I'm dismayed by the power of GSK, Goldman Sachs, General Motors, ADM in electing my officials. Maybe, just maybe, it would diminish the influence of corporations in US politics.

Or am I dreaming?

Technorati : ADM, GM, GSK, archer daniels midland, bruce ackerman, campaign contributions, general motors, glaxo, robert reich, us presidential election

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 09:58pm in Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (8) | TrackBack (0)

Ike Pigott on social media: the whales win

Fellow nobody Ike Pigott tells us why this social media stuff works:

"Social Media is simply the realization that sharks grow big only when constantly swimming after meaty fish, and whales grow huge by amassing a diet of plankton."

I'd say that pretty much nails it.

Dave Pollard shows us one way we plankton can wrestle with the sharks in his proposal for an open source legislative process. Here's a snip:

"I can appreciate that, a hundred years ago, it may have been necessary for elected politicians to hammer out legislation in smoke-filled back rooms. Communications and travel were slow and law-making is an iterative process, requiring not only consensus-building but also multiple redrafts to incorporate matters that the original draft forgot to consider.

But today there is no reason why the legislative (law-making) process cannot be completely transparent and draw on the collective wisdom of many citizens. In order for that to happen, I would propose a radical change to the way in which that legislative process occurs:

1. Each jurisdiction would have a wiki where any citizen or group of citizens..."

All sorts of good stuff on the feedreader this morning.

    Technorati : dave pollard, how to save the world, ike pigott, international association of nobodies, occam's razr, open source legislative process, social media

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 08:49am in Politics, Social Media | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (1)

President Gore, where art thou?

Al Gore moves people.

First, friend Flemming Wisler, who heard Gore speak in January.

"We heard a man who no longer has anything to prove. Who is past all bullshit, and who is now concentrating on his life's mission to put the earth's climate problem on the popular agenda."

And now friend Eric Eggertson, who heard Gore speak last week.

"Gone is the wooden, humourless politician, as presented by the media in his presidential fight against George W. Bush. In its place is a voice of confidence, a man willing to poke fun at himself and his cause if it will win support for the fight against global warming."

Back in December, I was having coffee in a little café in St. Mary's, Georgia (elevation: sea level). A couple of good old boys were sitting behind me. One was urging the other one to see An Inconvenient Truth, Gore's film, without fail: "Hit'll wake ya up! Lemme tell ya this: that ice pack melts, you and me gonna be runnin' charter out of Macon!"

With all respect to Flemming and Eric, the Danish and Canadian PR vote doesn't count. But when you can get a couple of Bubbas talking global warming on a chilly December morning, you might be on to something.

Technorati : al gore, an inconvenient truth, eric eggertson, flemming wisler

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 06:48pm in Conferences, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (1)

David Cameron blog... not a bad thing!

Via Simon Collister comes news of David Cameron's new blog. Cameron is the leader of Britain's Conservative Party, a party that has often appealed to the traditional, frumpy side of the UK. Because of the party, I expected to find a "blog-like website" with crafted position papers and fluff. Well, I was happily surprised. Cameron writes his own stuff, seemingly without staff influence. He Vlogs from the train ("Europe should stop picking fluff out of their navel!") and airport. Suggests that Gordon Brown "should get out more." The comments are lively, too.

I will be curious to see if he can keep it up through the next General Election. But I already like his site far better than those of any of the US presidential candidates.

Technorati : conservative party, david cameron, political bloggers, uk politics, webcameron

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 07:53pm in People of Note, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (1)

John Edwards triangulates (read: caves) on staff bloggers? Or....

John Edwards, the Democratic veep candidate in 2004, is running for the Democratic 2008 presidential nomination. While Edwards is not my full cup of political tea, I have been impressed -- deeply impressed -- by his embrace of social media to put his message out. He writes his posts -- I suspect that cannot continue as the campaign heats up, but for now -- he allows commenting, and he keeps comments that are, well, negative.

But he's in a ker... kerfluff....one of those tight spots. Because bloggers working for him have private blogs.

Edwards hired two bloggers, Amanda Marcotte and Melissa McEwan, to help with the social media side of his campaign. And good for him, I think: Marcotte and McEwan know what's what about social media: Marcotte blogs on progressive politics at Pandagon and McEwan does the same at Shakespeare's Sister. The problem, if we can call it that, is that both are more progressive than Edwards, and this is reflected in their own blog writings: To wit, they take Roman Catholics to task over RC opposition to gay rights, women's choice over their bodies .... you get the picture.

Bill Donohue, a prominent RC pundit, has called for the two to be fired.

To his credit, Edwards didn't fire them. To my dismay, however, he issued this statement:

The tone and the sentiment of some of Amanda Marcotte's and Melissa McEwan's posts personally offended me. It's not how I talk to people, and it's not how I expect the people who work for me to talk to people. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that kind of intolerant language will not be permitted from anyone on my campaign, whether it's intended as satire, humor, or anything else. But I also believe in giving everyone a fair shake. I've talked to Amanda and Melissa; they have both assured me that it was never their intention to malign anyone's faith, and I take them at their word. We're beginning a great debate about the future of our country, and we can't let it be hijacked. It will take discipline, focus, and courage to build the America we believe in.

That's a problem. Edwards should have said "I don't give a damn about what my employees write on their personal blogs on their spare time. Those are their blogs. If you want my view, read my blog. Don't fuck with my employees."

I wonder if Marcotte and McEwan are regretting joining Team Edwards...

Update: Marcotte resigned her position.

Technorati : amanda marcotte, bill donohue, john edwards, melissa mcewan, pandagon, shakespeare's sister

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 06:35pm in Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (4)

I don't think Lieberman is on the Cluetrain, yet

 Joe "Joe Gun" Lieberman will be back in the Senate, unless he takes Rumsfeld's job (and who would want that?). I am sure I would have not voted for Joe, were I a Nutmegger, which I am most assuredly not, but the people in Connecticut seem reasonably ok with him -- and that's good enough for me, since I have no say in the matter.

What interests me about Lieberman today is that he doesn't seem to understand the forces that threw the Democratic nomination to an upstart, and that compelled him to run a hard independent campaign for what he assumed would be a safe seat.

From today's New York Times:

Mr. Lamont’s campaign buoyed thousands of new voters and volunteers, and many of them helped the Democratic candidates in competitive House races here. In his victory speech Tuesday night, Mr. Lieberman offered somewhat of an olive branch, saying that Mr. Lamont had run a tough campaign.

Even as he said that he would “make sure that the system is open” to bloggers and other active party members, Mr. Lieberman criticized the “netroots,” the Internet activists who had helped fuel Mr. Lamont’s candidacy.

“Some of them have had a destructive effect on political discourse because they are so venomous,” he said. “Obviously, I was on the receiving end of a lot of it. And, you know, I didn’t recognize myself in what my staff let me see.”

Excuse me? Well, the system is going to stay open to bloggers. Not because bloggers are a special interest, but because they are citizens with a printing press. Can't put that genie back in the bottle. As for the "destructive effect on political discourse" -- that's just the hum of the marketplace. Politicians (and companies) have dominated the discourse for way too long (usually them shouting at us through advertising, then putting us on hold when we try to talk back), so I am sure this is going to take some getting used to. Get used to it.

The funniest line, I am sure you will all agree, is the last:  I didn’t recognize myself in what my staff let me see.”  That's how out of touch this guy (and thousands like him) is. I am sure he grabs the NYT and the Hartford Courant without consulting staff, but staff gets to sift through the blogs and "lets him see" selected clips. Can you see that happening at a visit to a factory? "Staff, bring me a single mom,  some hard hat whose grandfather and dad and uncles worked here, and a black guy... and tell the venomous ones to go home."

Folks, Joe, companies.... you will never recognize yourself until you stop looking in the mirror. The market always knows you better than you know yourself. Listen.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 08:17am in Current Affairs, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (3)

Robert Reich now has RSS!

A couple of months ago, I noted that Robert Reich, former US Secretary of Labor, is blogging (on Blogspot, no less). Since then, Reich has added a feed, so he's now someone I can read daily.

Thanks, Bob!

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 07:54pm in Civil Liberty, Podcasting, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0)

But now some good news: Campaigns Wikia

Jimbo Wales, founder of Wikipedia, has a new project: the Campaigns Wikia. Let Jimbo explain it:

One hallmark of the blog and wiki world is that we do not wait for permission before making things happen. If something needs to be done, we do it. Well, campaigns need to sit up and take notice of the Internet, take notice of bloggers, take notice of wikis, and engage with us in a constructive way.

The candidates who will win elections in the future will be the candidates who build genuinely participative campaigns by generating and expanding genuine communities of engaged citizens.

I am launching today a new Wikia website aimed at being a central meeting ground for people on all sides of the political spectrum who think that it is time for politics to become more participatory, and more intelligent.

This website, Campaigns Wikia, has the goal of bringing together people from diverse political perspectives who may not share much else, but who share the idea that they would rather see democratic politics be about engaging with the serious ideas of intelligent opponents, about activating and motivating ordinary people to get involved and really care about politics beyond the television soundbites.

Together, we will start to work on educating and engaging the political campaigns about how to stop being broadcast politicians, and how to start being community and participatory politicians.

Ok, I'm skeptical. But I'm signing on. I've worked in partisan politics, and I know party politics align with citizen wishes only coincidentally, temporarily and when it makes sense for the party.

Technorati Tags: campaigns wikia, jimbo wales, online politics

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 08:50pm in Online Media, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0)

Marshmallow Fluff should be banned from school tables

Scott Baradell, at Media Orchard, points us to the Fluffernutter Flap, without revealing his take on it. One suspects he's sort of sweet on the lamentable outcome of the flap, but I'll let him reveal that. I'm not afraid to reveal my take, however. Scott quotes the Boston Globe:

Jonathan Durkee has two words for [Massachusetts] state Senator Jarrett Barrios: Thank you.

Durkee is treasurer of the Lynn company that produces Marshmallow Fluff, which  Barrios targeted last month when he tried to ban the Fluffernutter sandwich from school lunches. But Barrios did not realize how much of a New England icon sweet marshmallow spread slathered over white bread and twinned with peanut butter was...

The Fluffernutter Wars were on. "Nightline" chimed in, along with Regis and Kelly and The Los Angeles Times ... Then the inevitable. Internet orders sent to the mother ship in Lynn skyrocketed 800 percent from 10 to 80 cases a day...

Durkee said it was too early to tell if the bump would carry through to the holiday season, when sales typically peak. In Lynn, fingers remained crossed. A thank-you letter to Barrios? Not yet in the mail.

A couple of quick points: 1) Durkee is not only treasurer, but an owner of the Durkee-Mower Company that makes the stuff. The Globe should have mentioned that. 2) Barrios is not trying to ban your  feeding your kids this stuff, if that is your desire. He just wants school lunchrooms stopped from dropping the sugar-bombs ("I'm not sure we should we should even be calling it a food.") on helpless targets. The Globe should have mentioned that, too.

Who's the winner here? Not the 23% of Americans who are obese.  Some PR practitioners may chortle over Fluff's windfall success -- after all, the company is shipping 8 times the stuff. But the chortles are where PR oldtimers buy the profession the disdain of the people. You see, Marshmallow Fluff is crap. Well, no, not crap but "corn syrup, sugar syrup, vanilla flavor, and egg white" -- please just imagine what these ingredients look like in industrial vats -- whipped into a froth, then pumped into containers. The stuff is so unstable the company cannot even provide a "Use Before" date -- it varies from "six months to one year" according to the company FAQ (So why don't they answer that one on the container, if it's an FAQ?).

There's no reason -- none in the world -- why this crap should be slathered on sandwiches and forced on children in school lunchrooms. Sugars, fats -- junk food -- are the everyday fare on American children's lunch tables. I know: I once had to eat the stuff. Fried and sweet come to mind most frequently. They could have just served us fried sugar and been done with it. And, no, this has nothing to do with having to serve many cheap meals in a short time. I was in the US Navy, which also serves great quantities of food: bland and boring, to be sure, but nutritious and balanced.

Is political hay being made? Barrios is a Massachusetts Democrat, a label that causes eyes to roll across the American "Heartland." But he's not alone. This week's edition of The Economist discusses the efforts of Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour, a Republican (in fact, a former head of the Republican National Committee) to reduce obesity in his state. Why would he bother? Because almost 65% of Mississippians are obese or overweight. Because obesity -- caused by cradle to early-grave consumption of fats and sweets -- is killing the state's workforce, raising its healthcare costs, and diverting funds from education, infrastructure, you name it.

Scott Baradell was careful not to reveal his views, but if I were Marshmallow Fluff's PR agency, I'd be circling the wagons (actually, I'd be resigning the account, embarrassed to have taken it in the first place). Helping companies make your kids fatter and sugar powered -- is that really a business you want to be in?

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 03:23pm in Advertising, Healthcare, Is Tedious in the House?, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (8)

Robert Reich, former US Labor Secretary, kicks off blog by roasting PR pracitioner

Robert Reich, former US Secretary of Labor, started a blog three weeks ago.

After a sort of rambling first post, he used the second post to rip GM's PR agency for trying to bribe him:

"I just got off the phone with a guy who works in public affairs for General Motors, asking me if I'd say publicly on the radio and TV that GM's buyback deal for GM workers (GM will give a certain lump sum of money to any worker who voluntarily quits) is a good deal for workers, and promising a sum of money for me if I did so. I told him I'd say nice things about the deal if I thought the deal was good and I'd condemn it if I thought the deal was bad, and I wouldn't take a dime. Frankly, I was offended that GM or anyone would think my opinion was for sale. It's bad enough the Administration pays Armstrong Williams and other columnists to support White House policy. Now, apparently corporate America is paying pundits to shill for them."

The New York Times picked up the story and identifies the blot on our profession as one Richard Strauss of Strauss Radio Strategies.  Strauss calls himself "the nation's premier expert on radio public relations."

According to the Times, Strauss blew off the accusation by Reich: "I may have mentioned the possibility of an honorarium" to Mr. Reich "out of deference and respect to him and his position."

Reich is still hasn't gotten his bloggin sea-legs yet... no RSS feed, no trackbacks, and really poor formatting ... but when smart guys like Reich blog, I can overlook baby steps.

Hat tip to Mike at Forward for tipping me off. Update:  Shel Holtz had a take on it, too, which I hadn't read when I posted.

Technorati Tags: robert reich, richard strauss, bribery, ethics, general motors

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 06:38pm in Ethics, People of Note, Politics, Public Relations | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (1)

Re-electing Al Gore

Elected once, he still can serve another term:

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/achenblog/2006/04/gore_in_2008.html

Via David Weinberger: http://www.hyperorg.com/blogger/mtarchive/reelect_gore.html

I suspect Vice-President Gore won't run for the nomination, but I wish he would. As The Economist explains this week, the US Democratic Party is all over the map on every issue except "We don't like Bush." Al Gore has always had a coherent message -- bring it on again, Al.

Technorati : Al Gore

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 09:47pm in Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (3)

PR and politics have lots in common?

Politics and PR -- industries with image problems. Stuart Bruce is both a politician and a PR practitioner. And while  he rarely goes off the rails, I think he's derailed here:

Public relations and politics have a lot in common. Not least is the fact that both PR practitioners and politicians are frequently criticised by people who know very little about the subject but think they are expert commentators.

The reason they think they are experts is that they are "consumers" of some of the products of PR and politics. The problem is they only see it from their own limited perspective and not the whole picture that the PRs and politicians have.

Well, what perspective do you expect them to have?

Stuart, I am a communicator, and I have been active in party politics, so we both have more experience in both fields than most people. I'd say, though, that when things go bad for our clients or candidates or parties, the problem is almost never a failing of the "consumer" -- the voter, or the journalist, or the user of the product. When reporters, consumers, voters lacerate our brands and candidates, it's generally because we have misunderstood them -- not the other way around.

Stuart is writing an essay on the topic.  I suspect I will disagree with it, but Stuart is always worth a careful read.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 01:21am in Communication, Politics, Public Relations | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (2)

“Don’t Stop” Business Innovation Conference asks Desirable Roasted Coffee to blog (and I said “yes”)

I love all my clients, of course, but I have particular affection for the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies.

My other clients are typical businesses: the halls are buzzing with folks rushing around to the next meeting, wrapping up from the last meeting, whacking out emails about that meeting, slapping their foreheads as they read the minutes from that other meeting they were too busy to attend.

Now, I don't want for a moment to imply that people at my other clients aren't "gettin' it done" -- they most certainly are -- but over at CIFS, you tend to see people just sitting quietly reading books. Staring dreamily out of the window. Writing books.

Because what they do is peer into the mists of the future and report back what they think they see. And not just for some ivory tower purpose; no, no -- their job is guiding businesses (including some of my other clients) into the future.

Pretty cool job, when you think about it -- being paid to think. As Seth Godin et al note in the Big Moo, most of us run around all day frantically putting out fires and responding to other people. Just having an hour or two a day to think, to imagine, to wonder what if, would be immeasurably valuable for both ourselves and our companies. So imagine having that for a job!

So when CIFS asked me to blog and podcast from their upcoming Don't Stop Thinking About Tomorrow conference, I didn't need a second invitation.

I'll contributing to the Don't Stop blog leading up to the conference, too. Client Gitte Larsen posted her interview with speaker Adam Morgan, director of eatbigfish. Here's a taste:

"Why is it important continually to think about tomorrow?

Adam Morgan: There are probably obvious answers to that, but my interest is in challengers. I think one of the things that characterizes continuously successful challengers rather than those who fade away after a while, is that they are very restless people, naturally, and they are continually looking and searching for new opportunities to reframe the way they engage consumers on the respective markets. I think that restlessness and hunger are some of the things that certainly characterize continued success..."

Indeed, I believe that restlessness and hunger are two of the very few motivators for innovation -- whether you are a corporation or a home gardener.

Technorati: dontstop01, CIFS, Copenhagen, Denmark, futures studies, Adam Morgan, eatbigfish, Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 06:18pm in Conferences, Copenhagen, Denmark, Desirable Roasted Coffee, Management, Politics, Society | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (2)

Governments Freak Over Google Earth

"Staying with Cartography, for 200, Alex... "

Last cartography post of the day, then I'll turn to something noble and uplifting like PR.

It's no secret some governments never want you to have an accurate map of anything. The highway maps issued by the US State of Tennessee often have little grounding in fact, for example.

But when the Australian, Dutch, UK, Korean and Borough of Queens governments start going after GoogleEarth, cartographobia is going too far. Oh, it's in the name of preventing terrorism, of course -- it always is. But it's rooted in a belief that ordinary people can't be trusted with maps.

Here's an excerpt from The Map Room, but I urge you to read the whole Google Earth Privacy and Security post.

On a related note, Ogle Earth had a look at the new USGS guidelines on disseminating aerial photography: apparently access was sometimes restricted without actually assessing the security risk — they were restricting things by default, in other words, which is exactly how not to do things in a democracy. One key point that Stefan noted was that secrecy was not justified if the data was available from other sources.

As it stands, Google doesn’t alter the images it receives from government or other sources, according to this article (via Very Spatial). That article also notes the following:

A 2004 Rand study of publicly accessible geospatial information concluded that terrorists would need more detailed data than is available via satellite images. The report also said they are more likely to turn to “direct observations” or “individuals familiar with the operations of a particular facility” to conduct attacks.

In other words, everybody is overreacting. We’re seeing two things: one, the political need to be seen to be doing something about terrorism, no matter how ineffectual, so long as it’s visible; and two, the bureaucratic impulse to keep things secret as a solution to a problem. For them, it’s easier to suppress information than to improve security.

See previous entries: Maps as Security Threat; Maps as State Secrets.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 12:41pm in Bizarre but Expected, Cartography, Is Tedious in the House?, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0) | TrackBack (0)

Harriet Miers is Blogging!

Well, not really. But within hours of Miers' nomination to be Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court, some enterprising wit put up Harriet Miers's Blog!!! The Blog of the #1 Smartest President Ever's #1 Pick to be the Next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.

The humor may fade quickly, but so far it's a hoot.

Hat tip to Catallarchy, via Political Calculations, via Drakeview, via BNET.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 08:43am in Bizarre & Amusing, Current Affairs, Humor, Law, People of Note, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0) | TrackBack (0)

Desirable Roasted Coffee is not Tripe...

On Monday afternoon the first in a series of three debates hosted by the European Parliament on the implications of the information society highlighted a number of issues in the use of so-called weblogs. Major concerns were the accountability of "bloggers" and the protection of privacy - or rather the lack of both.

I enjoy living in Europe, my home for over 20 years. Since I get back to the American South fairly often, I'm able to feed my desires for the best of that region, without being overly irritated by the things that prompted me to leave.

If I could ever be prompted to leave Europe, it would probably from a fit of pique sparked by the distrust European officialdom has always shown innovations in media.

Example: 15 years ago, it was illegal to have a satellite dish in Denmark. Why? People might watch who knows what all! And while that "what all" might be as innocent as a Turkish soap opera, it wouldn't be Danish.

Example: 7 years ago, I was on an IFPMA panel discussing the intersection of health care and the Internet. I was seated next to a  functionary of the Belgian health ministry, who sputtered so vehemently that all online discussion of pharmaceuticals and treatments should be illegal, even jailable, that my notes today are even wet with his spittle.

I naively thought we were past that.

But now the European Parliament is holding hearings about blogging. And... they are getting pretty poor advice from the usual suspects: journalists frightened to death, who are willing to drag in any red herring rotting behind the fishmongers.

Here's a quote from the "debate".

"As Karlin Lillington, a technology journalist of the Irish Times pointed out, "journalists face libel laws, whereas some bloggers behave as if they're in the Wild West. Bloggers will state things without saying where they got them from. And increasingly, blogs are used to promote products without making this clear"."

This is fairly easy to parse. Wild West (or cowboy, or John Wayne) is a code-phrase for the US. Americans roar with laughter when I tell them this, but that's just how it is. So what Lillington is really saying is "[European] journalists face libel laws, whereas some [European] bloggers behave as if they're in [the United States]".

Well, that's bullshit. Libel laws apply to everyone. To the extent that those laws  and court precedents differentiate between two classes, it's journalists, not "private" citizens who get the better break.

And bloggers are suspect because they promote products? Well, Desirable Roasted Coffee doesn't and doesn't intend to. But what if I did? What business is it of the European Parliament or the Irish Times? Not much.

We bloggers had at least one ally:

Thomas Burg, of BlogTalk.net, saw things very differently, saying "weblogs are not about content but about sharing, learning and connecting with other people". Blogs should thus be seen as free conversations between people who do not need to adhere to specific rules, rather than as news postings on the Internet.

But he was quickly shot out of the saddle (obligatory cowboy metaphor) by Aidan White, General Secretary (note to Aidan: Socialism is dead... get a new title) of the International Federation of Journalists:

"a democratic society sets certain norms and standards which should not be thrown out of the window. He deplored the lack of a global legal framework to combat child pornography and libellous or hateful weblogs on the Internet."

Note, students of rhetoric, how deftly Aidan White connects your unregulated blog to abhorrent crime, libel, hate, the discarding of democratic norms. You'd look positively anti-social... even criminal... if you object now to having some "norms" and "regulations" put on your blog.

And Karlin Lillington is also quick to question your values, your morals, your stand-upness for the law if you happen to be a citizen journalist:

"As regards privacy, Lillington acknowledged that weblogs after last December's tsunami were a useful source of information and that pictures taken by passers-by after the bomb attacks on the London underground were posted on the Internet quicker than by any established news organisation, but she also stressed that these did somehow damage privacy. However, she added, "these are not new crimes, there are just new tools to commit them"."

Well, Karlin Lillington, that makes it clear. Now I know exactly the difference between a paid Irish Times journalist and a blogger who both witness....  no, hang on... I'll get it right in a minute! Bear with me...

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 12:55pm in Bloggers, Blogging, Citizen Journalism, Civil Liberty, Communication, Expatriate Life, Journalism, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0) | TrackBack (0)

"You're the Boss and You Can Use the Blog for Whatever Damn Thing You Like"

From our Blogging Politicians Who May Not Be Getting It office comes the strange and wonderful news that Washington, DC mayor Anthony "Tony" Williams is blogging.

Tony is getting off to a slow start. He made his first post on August 15th then went silent for a few days. Comments -- 44 -- piled up.  Most were friendly. Some were  pointed, though not barbed.

Williams never responded.

You have ask yourself, what sort of blogging advice is this man getting? Of course, we saw the same thing at the IABC Chairman's Blog last winter, so it's probably unfair to hang Williams out when professional communicators don't immediately get it.

Williams reappeared on the 22nd with a snappy little post that -- and I may just be imagining this -- showed a twitch of irritation (and, as you read, remember that he's up for re-election next year):

"...the blog is not a service request line. Then again, I’m a public servant and you’re the boss and you can use blog for whatever damn thing you like. And you can expect me to refer service requests to the proper agencies for disposition. I’ll also give you a comment on the policy implications of your request. You say jump and I’ll ask how high.

"But it would be really helpful if you would call 727-1000, or write dc.gov. Get a tracking number. And if the service isn’t helpful, let me know by sharing with me your tracking number. Giving me information on what, where, why and how is helpful. Making an expressive but not very helpful comment on ignorant public officials or employees isn’t.

"I’ve got to run to a reception. Chew on this and fire back with righteous indignation or comforting, supportive comments and I’ll be back later with more. And…answers to some of your comments."

Heh, heh... Well, one thing's for sure: no hack or handler is writing the Mayor's blog.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 03:34pm in Bloggers, Communication, People of Note, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0) | TrackBack (0)

Kelo: Americans (and Political PR Types) Should Get Used to the Name

In her post, The Kelo Backlash Continues, Virginia Postrel writes about the Kelo Case -- in which the US Supreme Court said it's ok for the state to expropriate private property to turn over to other private citizens for "development".

"Contrary to popular belief, the Kelo decision, terrible though it was, didn't really make new law. It ratified the status quo. For decades, cities have been taking private property under eminent domain, only to hand it over to private developers. The general public just had no idea how big the problem was until the Supreme Court said the practice was OK."

Coincidentally, this week's issue of The Economist also looks at Kelo and predicts the case will become as inflammatory as Roe vs. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that decided abortion rights. The Economist notes that abortion was widely available in the US before the decision, and that the decision served mainly to stir up conservative ire. It predicts the Kelo decision, which largely affirms widespread practice, will serve to stir up populist ire.

That ire will raise all sorts of PR issues for local government (who do most of the expropriation), developers, and local grassroots organizations. And hands politicians of all stripes a nice juicy bone.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 07:09pm in Law, Politics, Public Relations | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0) | TrackBack (0)

Yes, Mr. President, that's a pork chop. And those are beans. We gave the sweetbreads to the dog, sir.

Utter lack of imagination is not a sign of anything, is it?

"The President likes to recognize what he's eating. He doesn't like to eat things that look strange on the plate."

Link: Woman chef wins White House cook-off - Americas - International Herald Tribune.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 03:52pm in Food, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (2) | TrackBack (0)

John Wagner Asks: How Would a CEO Handle the Sheehan Protest?

John Wagner captures nicely the thought that's been running through my head for a couple of days: George W. Bush can only lose by ignoring Cindy Sheehan's protest. There's simply no PR upside to this for the White House.

One of the positive aspects of living in a small parliamentary democracy is that politicians can't hide for long. If a Sheehan were to challenge the Danish Prime Minister, he'd be out in front of reporters, with her, in a few minutes. Not because he relished the encounter, but because a) it can only get worse and b) the next time he showed up in parliament, every opposition member would have Sheehan's questions in hand... and would compel an answer.

Nope, no upside for the White House on this one.

John asks how a CEO would react if a dissatisfied customer camped out on the doorstep. One hopes, for the sake of the shareholders, that the CEO is on the doorstep the next morning taking notes. But political presidents know they don't have to do that, even if they might know they should.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 09:16pm in Bizarre but Expected, Politics, Public Relations | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (1) | TrackBack (0)

US Supreme Court Nomination Blog

The Supreme Court Nomination Blog is giving news and updates on the Supreme Court nomination in a thoroughly non-partisan fashion.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 09:27am in Law, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0) | TrackBack (0)

Mark Felt, American Hero

Deep Throat -- the critical source for Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein as they peered into the morass of Watergate in 1972-74 -- turns out to be Mark Felt, number 2 at the FBI during that time.

I'm glad it's him. I'm glad the second ranking cop in the country looked at reality, realized the justice system was not working -- not at all -- in Watergate, and went to the press.

Nixon-apologists and convicted felons Charles Colson, G. Gordon Liddy, and Jeb Stuart Magruder, all of whom went, deservedly, and not long enough for my money, to prison for Watergate, and Pat Buchanan, who escaped any blot on his record through divine intervention (how else to account for it?), all weigh in on the 91-year old Felt.

Shame.

I believe in the rule of law, and I trust the legal system most of the time. But a White House gone amok makes its own rules, believes itself above the law. Above opinion.

Sometimes it takes a whistleblower to take folks down a peg.

Mark Felt: American Hero

Update: I added Gordon Liddy, and a link to Media Matters.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 08:24pm in History, Law, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (4) | TrackBack (0)

Ten Most Harmful Books of the 19th and 20th Centuries?

When you remember that political conservatives pretty much run the US, it's unsettling to read their list of the 10 most harmful books of the last 200 years. The first three are predictable, but the Kinsey Report shows up at No. 4.

Take a deep breath and go view the list.

Tip of the hat to things magazine.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 06:05pm in Books, Politics, Society | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0) | TrackBack (0)

Blogs May Not Be as Influential as Some Think

Back on (US) Election Night, I noted that bloggers failed to deliver. And they did fail... mainstream media was way ahead of the blogosphere in reporting just about every race (because MSM can deploy more troops to report.

Now Personal Democracy Forum reports that bloggers were not all that influential -- or as influential as blogosphere myth would make it -- before the election:

"Bloggers are often touted as influential instigators, feeding buzz-worthy topics to the mainstream media they so disdain, and even guiding discussion in other communication channels. Not so, says a new study analyzing the impact of political blogs on the national conversation leading up to the 2004 presidential election. Indeed, Buzz, Blogs, and Beyond: The Internet and the National Discourse in the Fall of 2004 concludes that, while a force to be reckoned with, blogs are merely cogs in the meme machine."

Link: Blogs May Not Be as Influential as Some Think | Personal Democracy Forum.

Posted by Allan Jenkins at 12:05pm in Bloggers, Citizen Journalism, Politics | Permalink | Comments Welcome! (0) | TrackBack (0)