USA Today: Super Web site helps Dean surge ahead

[pruner]

Every four years, the presidential primary season features an intrepid outsider who seeks to overthrow the powers that be and win the nomination. The history books are filled with the stories of worthy challengers, both successful and not. This time, former Vermont governor Howard Dean is playing the part. The latest polls show him in the lead in both the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary next month.

…

But Dean's run isn't causing talk simply because of his skills as a politician. On the campaign trail he has made his share of mistakes. One example is his appeal to Southerners driving pickups with Confederate decals. And many non-Web traditionalists believe he is too liberal to win the presidency.

What's getting the buzz is his powerful use of the Web. Indeed, it wouldn't be entirely wrong to say the Web has made Dean's campaign what it is today — and left his Democratic rivals scratching their heads. The question they all seem stuck on is: Why can Dean use the Web this way and we can't?

…

Dean "gets it" because he understands that campaigns — Web-based or otherwise — mirror most Americans' everyday lives: They're a mix of careful planning and unpredictability. His advantage over opponents is that he understands the strongest, best-prepared candidate will be the one who acknowledges this central fact, then builds a campaign that is fast, fluid and flexible — like the Web itself. Thanks mostly to three rules of the Web, Dean for now has left his competitors in the virtual dust:

• Web rule No. 1: Authenticity can't be faked.

• Web rule No. 2: The message must fit the medium and the messenger.

• Web rule No. 3: The Web belongs to everyone.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2003-12-07-webber_x.htm

[rumguy]

1. Joe Trippi is a smart guy

Didn't he work for Jerry Brown in 91-92? Perhaps it was Trippi's idea for Brown's 1-800 number...that got a lot of press too. Trippi thinks outside the box, giving me faith that if Dean wins the nom they will put up a good fight.

[madfloridian]

2. I like this part.

This is a good part, being comfortable with others having a role in it. Maybe that is why there is little sniping at the blog or forum, just for this reason.

SNIP...."The fact Dean is comfortable with this arrangement gives him a kind of credibility that politicians can't earn through speeches. It says to his supporters — and those still considering candidates — that he's one of us, not one of them.

Of course, Dean's campaign still has a long way to go. But this much is clear: Whether or not he ever gets to write a presidential inaugural address, he already has rewritten the rules of campaigning...."

[Eloriel]

3. Rule #1 isn't just a rule of the weeb

It's a rule of LIFE. And that's why Dean's internet tools don't work for the other guys quite like they work for Dean.

Eloriel

[KittyWampus]

4. Whoever Wrote This Doesn't Know Squat About Websites

Clark's blog created with an open source code that allows its users to rate & post articles on the front page. This is in no way like Dean's site.

Yet here is what the reviewer says:

"Wesley Clark: The general started campaigning late, which carries one advantage: He has been able to emulate the Dean Web site's energy and informality. Clark's site is a reasonable facsimile and shows good skills at mimicry. But you do have to wonder: Is it live, or is it Memorex?"


Mimicry?

Cerrtain similarities are inevitable since once the wheel exists there is no reason to reinvent it....

But Clark's blog is a generation ahead of Deans and certainly is no "facsimile".

Nice puff piece for Dean though.

[pruner]

5. I think the rating system is part of Scoop software

dailyKos uses Scoop and they've got a rating system too.

[madfloridian]

6. I am inclined to agree with you on Clark's treatment lately.

I hate to say it but I do. I like him, and I think they perhaps have gone after the controversy that is Dean. Clark's blog is well-organized, with all being linkable to it.

[KittyWampus]

7. And There's No Denying That Dean/Trippi Moved The Ball Foward

Thanks to them and their supporters..

And AL GORE for inventing the internet.
:D