Republicans Still Don't Get New Media

Contrast this with my personal experience since coming down to the DC area to be involved in a larger, more conservative new media effort.

via lib blog FireDogLake: Marcy and I are at the Hart Senate Office Building with Atrios, Jerome, Bowers, David Corn, Mike Rodgers, Natasha Chart, Chris Hayes, Brownsox and others listening to various Senators come in and talk about their issues.

Stabenow:  Obama will soon sign an executive order lifting the ban on stem cell research.  The Senate will also pass bill enhancement and extension of SCHIP in the next couple of weeks.  In the stimulus plan there will be a substantial investment in health IT, but privacy issues need to be addressed.

I've talked and met with people on the Hill, several people from aligned agencies, Right-leaning think tanks and the like. I've even discussed how a comparable serious Right-side new media effort could be accomplished without breaking a DC sweat and have even laid out plans for some that would keep it independent, yet increase its impact exponentially, while empowering a great many bloggers on the Right to bring more to the game.

I realize Heritage and some others do new media outreach. The Right-side Senate does a weekly conference call. But it's rare for a politician to even partake. You get communications people instead. With no disrespect meant to them, I could read what they have to say in the Washington Post.

Right-side campaigns often just hire flaks who in many cases don't even get blogs, or are more old media types, or too young and inexperienced to do much more than send out PR. I suspect in most cases, that's all they allow them to do. And even that is often done perfunctorily at best, or poorly at worst, as far as good blogger outreach is concerned.

New media began to earn serious respect in Bush's re-election when the Freepers and lgf brought down Rather with no help from DC. The impact of new media has only grown over the years. On the Left side of things, they took out George Allen, long thought to be a Republican candidate for President this past year.

There are too many items to point to to validate the importance of new media in helping to shape the future direction of politics in America. And now years after it emerged the Right side of DC remains disjointed, seemingly confused in some cases, and relatively weak in its overall approach to using new media as an effective tool to drive discussion and debate.

While many issues may point to a real need for new leadership on the Right in DC, this is certainly an important one. At this point, up against a popular President who knows full well the power of the Internet and New Media, the continued failure of Republicans in Washington to capitalize on new media is beyond being a joke and is flirting with becoming a tragic failure of the Republican Party as a whole.

Comments

[mark l.]

it is endemic in the parties, that conservatives tend to be introverts and the libs are extroverts.

I find no surprise in the libs ability to organize and function in this thing called mass media.

Shumer, Reid, Pelosi, and now Obama go running to tell people that they are going to help them, without mentioning they'll be doing it with debt or other people's money. The chance to bask in public adulation at the expense of someone else is what drives them.

likewise, the conservatives, the real, real conservatives do not run to cameras, let alone public office. In many ways the uncommon extrovert(relative ONLY to other conservatives) rise to the top spots of a party, that is, by nature introverted.

I appreciate the gravity of the media gap, but there has to be another way to make up ground. I'm wathcing the current incarnation of the republican party running like a greyhound after an electronic rabbit. So long as it is on the msm's race track, they'll always place second and they'll never catch the rabbit.

[jharp]

I believe you are focusing too much on the messenger and too little on the message.

I favor the democrats position on health care, civil rights, the Iraq War (most democrats anyway), tax reform, workers rights, freedom of choice, separation of church and state. And in that order.

And I don't give a damn who the messenger is or how the messenger frames the debate.

I'd suggest the GOP take a long hard look at policy and forget about the spin.

[LOL]

Clear channel is laying off nearly 10% of its workforce.

[mark l.]

jharp, there is a certain ying-yang about you...

your opposite doesn't trust the govt to a point of insanity, (like thinking they are braodcasting to his fillings).
that does mean, you are the the one who trusts govt to a point of insanity.

you are a democratic babushka.

[jharp]

mark l,

I really don't don't what you are talking about but I trust business less than I trust government which isn't a lot. And that is just because I've been in business 25 years and have witnessed it first hand.

At least with government we can vote the bastards out. Business not only are we stuck with, but it is their fiduciary duty to screw us as much as they can get away with. And then not can we not vote the business leaders out but they get a raise.

[Lala]

CAROLINE KENNEDY ENDS SENATE SEAT BID

*

By FREDRIC U. DICKER IN ALBANY and MAGGIE HABERMAN IN N.Y.
Caroline Kennedy
Caroline Kennedy

Last updated: 6:59 pm
January 21, 2009
Posted: 6:43 pm
January 21, 2009

Caroline Kennedy has told Gov. David Paterson that she is withdrawing her name from consideration to replace outgoing Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in the U.S. Senate, The Post has learned.

Kennedy cited "personal reasons," according to sources.

Her stunning move comes as sources revealed that Paterson had intended to appoint her to the now-vacant seat today

http://www.nypost.com/seven/01212009/news/politics/caroline_kennedy_ends_senate_seat_bid_151234.htm

[mark l.]

saw schumer a couple of days ago...

when asked about who would fill the seat, he replied that he wouldn't dare say, offerring that there was a wide 'bench' to choose from.

should have seen his failure to endorse as a sign of things to come.

Schumer knew she was going to back out when the interview ran.

[mark l.]

whoever they pick, I'd bet it would require keeping the Clinton Senate Team untouched. They're probably frozen out by the Obama camp filling spots in federal govt, and hillary can only take so many with her to state.

kennedy probably had too large of a gaggle.

[Typical Whte Person]

""While many issues may point to a real need for new leadership on the Right in DC, this is certainly an important one.""

Well said, who do we conservatives have to speak for us that is not a dud? McCain and his buddy from South Carolina might as well be sitting on Obama's lap. Who do we have?

Palin if she does well - The Media seems afraid of her - but she need some time in the saddle as does Jindal.

I have not seen or heard anyone that excites me as head of the RNC.

I quit being a Republican when the Democrats selected McCain and am now an Independent - whatever that is.

[Lala]

The problem with being an Independent is that you may not be able to vote in the primaries.

[Lala]

I think Caroline opted out when she heard that the party wanted money from her.

[gus]

Republicans don't fight as hard as Democrats.
Losers become winners, when winners put up their hands and say NO MAS.
Republicans have.

[Lala]

Maybe Patterson will appoint housing disaster Cuomo - see the proof

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivmL-lXNy64&eurl=http://hotair.com/archives/2008/10/10/video-subprime-loans-affirmative-action-andrew-cuomo/

[jharp]

"Palin if she does well - The Media seems afraid of her - but she need some time in the saddle"

This simply blows my mind. If you like her by all means go for it. I honestly can't see how anyone would feel she is qualified. Did you not see the Katie Couric interview? Or her lying about the bridge to nowhere? Or her non debate with Biden?

And the media seems afraid of her? You have got to be kidding. She hid from the media. And people love to see a train wreck of an interview. She would sell like crazy. Though I will credit Palin with having the brains to avoid a real interview. She seems to well understand what a catastrophe it would be for her.

[gus]

NEWSFLASH CHICAGO ILLINOIS LIB PRESS:

In a stunning move Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich tapped the Reverened Jeremiah Wright to replace Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as the next junior Senator from New York.
Rahm Emanuel could not be reached for comment.

[gus]

Jharp you libtard, I don't watch Katie Couric. Is she on the Comedy Channel.
Palin is far more qualified that Obama. Go drool in the corner you blubbering imbecile.

[mary]

If he appoints Cuomo then who will be the "watchdog of Wall Street"?

[Mark Turner]

Republicans are having an identity crisis (what do they really stand for) that the Dems went through a few years back, as Howard Dean once lamented that people in his own party "acted like Republicans half the time". They seemed to solve that problem and find some solidarity in this election cycle. The GOP needs to find and articulate a clear and compelling vision. Old media was also hostile to Bush because he didn't know how to communicate his ideas effectively enough and didn't seem to understand the importance of communication via the media in gaining and retaining favorable public opinion. Reagan understood it, so did Clinton, and so does Obama.

[Lala]

Interview with Rudy Giuliani re the Republican Party -

http://www.crimsonpolitics.com/rudy-giuliani-explains-republican-partys-failure-2008

[Mark Turner]

Sarah Palin may have a bright future in GOP politics but she is a classic example of someone who desparately needs to improve her use of the media, whether it be old or new, to articulate a clear and compelling vision. The Katie Couric interview came off as amateurish, incoherent, and lacking self confidence, yet I've heard other speeches she has made and there is power to her words at times -- Palin needs more consistency of persona in public speaking. Barack Obama on the other hand is a fantastic speaker, inspirational to many and smooth with words -- even though I disagree with many of his plans for America and the root causes of our problems.

[Lala]

Camille Paglia on Katie Couric (the little squeaky mouse) (humorless - like most liberals)

And let me take this opportunity to say that of all the innumerable print and broadcast journalists who have interviewed me in the U.S. and abroad since I arrived on the scene nearly 20 years ago, Katie Couric was definitively the stupidest. As a guest on NBC's "Today" show during my 1992 book tour, I was astounded by Couric's small, humorless, agenda-ridden mind, still registered in that pinched, tinny monotone that makes me rush across the room to change stations whenever her banal mini-editorials blare out at 5 p.m. on the CBS radio network. And of course I would never spoil my dinner by tuning into Couric's TV evening news show. That sallow, wizened, drum-tight, cosmetic mummification look is not an appetite enhancer outside of Manhattan or L.A. There's many a moose in Alaska with greater charm and pizazz.

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2009/01/14/camille-paglia-calls-katie-couric-definitively-stupidest-journalist

[jharp]

Jharp you libtard, I don't watch Katie Couric. Is she on the Comedy Channel.
Palin is far more qualified that Obama. Go drool in the corner you blubbering imbecile.

Posted by: gus | Wednesday, January 21, 2009 at 07:35 PM

So then gus, kindly share with me where you have watched Palin and were impressed with her responses.

Was it the non debate with Biden? Or was it on Hannity?

More qualified than Obama? Obama was sworn in a President yesterday. Palin's up the Arctic governor of a state with 600,000 people and being laughed at by the whole world.

Obama has an approval rating in the 80's and is revered by the whole world.

You are a funny guy, gus.

[Mark Turner]

jharp:

"...by the whole world" is an exaggeration, but your point is well taken. Palin may have been more qualified than Obama, and McCain certainly was, but they sure didn't make an effective case for it. If McCain was as eloquent at speaking as Obama, he would have taken the election. Goes to show what public image can do to your chances of success, if you know how to use it right.

[Lala]

They really love Obama in Iran

Hardline demonstrators burn posters of U.S. President-elect Barack Obama, during a demonstration in support of the people of Gaza, in front of the Swiss Embassy in Tehran January 13, 2009.

http://www.floppingaces.net/2009/01/13/iranians-burn-photos-of-obama/

[Lala]

Hot off the press -

CAROLINE KENNEDY MAKES DECISION AFTER LEARNING SHE WASN'T GOING TO BE PICKED AS SENATOR
NY POST ^ | Jan 21, 2009 | FREDRIC U. DICKER and MAGGIE HABERMAN

Posted on Wednesday, January 21, 2009 8:16:16 PM by COUNTrecount

Caroline Kennedy tonight withdrew her name from consideration to replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate after learning that Gov. David Paterson wasn't going to choose her, The Post has learned.

Kennedy's decision removes the highest-profile name in the ring to step into Clinton's now-vacant seat, as she departs after getting confirmed today as President Obama's Secretary of State.

Sources said the reason Paterson had decided not to tap the daughter of John F. Kennedy was her poor performances in media interviews and in in private sessions with various officials.

[Mark Turner]

"Sources said the reason Paterson had decided not to tap the daughter of John F. Kennedy was her poor performances in media interviews and in private sessions with various officials."

-------------

Media image matters -- and Paterson knows it.

[Lala]

Evil Conservative has started a radio show - it can be streamed on your computer -

http://www.evilconservativeonline.com/

[mary]

Isn't she Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg? Why did she drop the Schlossberg?

[Lala]

The "you knows" were too much, she sounded like a Valley Girl.

[Lala]

She's nobody as a Schlossberg, besides it would soon morph into Schlockberg.

[jharp]

"Palin may have been more qualified than Obama"

That is ludicrous. If she was so qualified why wasn't she on the top of the ticket. Palin is a joke. And an embarrassment to the United States that she got anywhere near the Presidency.

Plain was selected by McCain for one reason. To mobilize the knuckledraggers and troglodytes who otherwise would have stayed home.

And how'd that turn out. Palin so offended the moderate and reasonable republicans that McCain got his ass kicked. He'd of had a better chance with Romney.

[Dan]

"Paterson had decided not to tap the daughter of John F. Kennedy"

So the blind black guy who had a mistress problem early on won't "tap" a Kennedy babe?

Wow, we really have come a long way.

[Lala]

Caroline as a Babe doesn't come to mind. It's a shame she got the Kennedy genes and not her mother's, as John did.

[mark l.]

the pic they have on drudge of kennedy...

she has bob shrum's nose.

(and she has bob shrum's nose for politics.)

[North Dallas Thirty]

"That is ludicrous. If she was so qualified why wasn't she on the top of the ticket."

Because there was someone even more qualified than she was who WAS on the top of the ticket.

The oddity here is that the Obama Party put the least-qualified and experienced person on the top of the ticket.

But that's for an obvious reason; in the Obama Party, blackness substitutes for competence and experience.

Meanwhile, the reasons jharp opposes Palin so much and considers her an embarassment are threefold: she's a woman, she's a woman who doesn't kowtow to liberal men, and she herself blew the whistle on and got fined/thrown out of office men who engaged in serious political corruption.

That, and the fact that jharp hates her for loving her special-needs child, which makes it more obvious how disgusting his hatred of his own is.

[Mark Turner]

jharp:

Palin didn't so much offend the moderate GOP, but certainly proved not to be so much of an asset when she didn't handle the media pressure very well. Again, I said she "might" have been more qualified; Obama himself had a very shallow political resume also, up until his election to the Presidency. He does have a more dynamic and smooth media persona, and that is largely what got him elected. Selling hope and change to the masses didn't hurt either; it worked for Clinton against GHW Bush in 1992.

[Lala]

Fran Drescher (The Nanny) wants to be New York's Senator.

[Fred Beloit]

The linked to blog in Dan's piece has some really crazy stuff on it. From Carl Levin:
"I think the Iranian government is hell bent on getting nuclear weapons," based on the fact that Iranians won't open up facilities to inspection and intelligence sources. Russia is second to Israel the most threatened by Iranian nuclear capability, so if US and Russia can join together on a missile defense system against an Iranian threat, then he thinks Iran will take that seriously. He also thinks NATO expansion is an important part of avoiding military action in Iran."

I just recently read, as I recall on one of the military blogs, that Russia has just recently sold Iran a state-of-their[intentional]-art anti-aircraft weapons system. I guess being a lib pol doesn't leave much time to keep up with the news, too busy changing and hoping.

From Guardian.co.uk:
"Russia is to supply Iran with a new and lethal anti-aircraft system capable of shooting down American or Israeli fighter jets in the event of any strike on Iran's nuclear facilities."

HOWEVER: From Foxnews.com:
"MOSCOW — The federal agency overseeing Russia's military exports on Friday denied reports that the country is planning to deliver a powerful new anti-aircraft missile system to Iran.

Iran's defense minister had said earlier this week that Russia was preparing to equip Iran with the S-300 missile system, which would dramatically increase the country's ability to repel an attack.

But Russia's Federal Military-Technical Cooperation Service denied the claim in a brief statement."