E-Obama - Accessing Government

It is needless to say that Obama's presidency will be historic, but I'll go ahead and say it anyways.

I simply want to re-emphasize and stress the true historic weight his inauguration will have. Not only will our nation have its first African-American president (just in case you did not pick that one up), but the ongoings at the White House will be thrust open by a policy of unprecedented, and hopefully, unbiased access. 

Obama has debuted his new "e-toys" prior to stepping into office, and by putting these accessibility mechanisms into play now, he has assured us that the governmental transparency will continue.   I want to briefly comment on the two prominent tools at Obama's disposal, the website change.gov, and his weekly 'YouTube Fireside Chats'.

The change.gov website is a phenomenal idea, and, so far, the execution is top-notch (go see for yourself!).  The site displays agenda items, policy concerns, and highlights upcoming important events.  It allows the American public and opportunity to provide feedback and input into OUR government. Most importantly it opens up the Government, and clears the air of the clandestine Bush administration.  The Internet has been around for the entirety of my adult life, and this website has the potential to be the most important political tool for dissemination of information to date.

Initially, I was enthusiastic about Obama posting his weekly 'Fireside Chats' on YouTube, however my feelings have been tempered.  The quality of the message was not to be faulted, but the production value sure should be.  Obama looks uninspiring, and well, un-presidential.  Just watch the speech Obama gave in Chicago the night of the Election, and contrast it with his latest installment.  While this comparison is certainly unfair on the whole, it still illustrates the point that the first Fireside Chats could, and should, look better than a High School project filmed in someones basement. 

In addition, finding the clip through YouTube's search function is troublesome.  Wisely, change.gov provides a direct link.  While the concept of taking advantage of a social media phenom, YouTube, is sure to be effective, there is obviously still work to be done.