The countdown has begun, the suspense is building, and the stakes are very high. As our nation prepares for inauguration day, millions of Americans flock to Change.gov to hear President-elect Barack Obama's weekly radio address, read blog updates, learn more about the latest announcements, offer their own thoughts and suggestions or tell their story.
The Washington Post offered an: e-Hail to the Chief which went on to ask how the President-elect will govern using this new online community. No one doubts the power and money that online supporters provided during the campaign, but running the government offers many different challenges.
Here's an excerpt: "With some notable exceptions, federal Washington -- how agencies deal with citizens, the process in which policies and laws are created -- is stuck in the Encyclopaedia Britannica era. A relatively small group of editors and contributors is in charge....
And online social networking is designed to foster a community. For that approach to be effective, WhiteHouse.gov can't just push information out -- it has to pull content in, too. And once it does so, the administration will have to decide whether, when and how to incorporate those voices into its decision-making process."
Meanwhile, federal PR machines are sure to run into conflicting messages if too many people can speak within the next administration. Even current media rules are not followed, but Web 2.0 offers new channels. Here's another example from the Washington Post:
"Until the archaic rules were revised this fall, legislators using their official congressional sites were prohibited from linking to YouTube and other commercial sites. (But many did it anyway. Even Pelosi, who has a YouTube channel and a blog called The Gavel, was violating the rules.)
Some items will be easy to change, like placing more schedules and meetings online. However, it will be much more complicated to meet the demands of millions of citizens who all have their own top priorities that they want addressed immediately. There is little doubt that critics will also send in their opinions and stories as well as the supporters.
As a blogger and government employee myself, I find this new approach to be both exciting, empowering and a bit overwhelming. I feel as if we are opening up Pandora's Box. Technology will be front and center - which will likely be a very good development as well as a huge challenge to overcome. Yes, there will be many security and privacy questions to be answered as well.
What are your thoughts on technology and the President Obama's new approaches?
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