New York Times: May the Best Blogger Win

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New York Times: May the Best Blogger Win

The New York Times June 24, 2006

By Avi Salzman

JOHN from New Haven was posting comments on a political blog a few weeks ago when one of the site's regulars posted a comment of his own: "Wow."

He was reacting to John's last name, DeStefano, and his current position, mayor of New Haven. Without telling the administrator of the site, Mr. DeStefano, a Democrat, had decided to begin a dialogue about his campaign for governor. There was risk involved: Anyone can sign up and comment on the site (which has an off-color name), and there was no telling what kind of vitriol the mayor might inspire. In his attempt to join in an unpredictable forum, Mr. DeStefano seemed at first like someone's dad, trying to be cool.

"My staff doesn't think that I'm Internet-savvy enough to blog - I'm here to prove them wrong," he wrote. "I've come to appreciate the 'blogosphere' (a new word for me, I admit) as a critical component in encouraging the dialogue between Democrats throughout the country."

Mr. DeStefano scored points with the site's regulars simply for showing up. One poster wrote that he had showed "courage and character."

Mr. DeStefano's campaign, like many around the nation, has its own blog, which is updated by staffers. But campaign blogs rarely have the kind of rapid give-and-take that make blogs compelling, and much of the political Web traffic centers on forums without political allegiances. In Connecticut, the site Mr. DeStefano was using is one of the most respected sites. Its credibility was why the campaign chose it, said Derek Slap, Mr. DeStefano's spokesman.

Mr. DeStefano said he planned to blog on the site every Monday, answering questions, posting videos and talking about his policy proposals. Kelly Monaghan, who runs the site and is not affiliated with any gubernatorial campaign, said he welcomed the candidates and would not censor or edit tough comments or questions from his readers, as long as they were not cruel personal attacks.

Dannel P. Malloy, Mr. DeStefano's opponent in the Democratic primary on Aug. 8, has also interacted on blogs. Last year, he participated in an interview on the site Connecticut Local Politics (connecticutlocalpolitics.blogspot.com) and recently posted on the same site Mr. DeStefano visited. Mr. Malloy, who has trouble typing because of dyslexia and problems with small motor skills, said his campaign manager, Chris Cooney, dictates his comments to a staff member. Mr. Malloy said he was not concerned that people could post negative comments about him while he was posting.

"I think the reality is it's self-monitoring," he said. "The more attacks, the less potent they are."

Mr. Slap said the DeStefano campaign was considering proposing an online debate before the primary. Mr. Malloy said he was open to the idea, but was "not sure that's the best way" to debate.

Gov. M. Jodi Rell, who is seeking re-election, has not participated in online forums, but is interested and may post on Connecticut Local Politics this summer, said Rich Harris, a Rell spokesman.