Jeremy in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Obama reaches out to the young with first weekly YouTube talk
By Bob Albrecht
POST-DISPATCH WASHINGTON BUREAU
Sunday, Nov. 16 2008

President-elect Barack Obama delivered the weekly Democratic
address on YouTube on Saturday, speaking not just on radio
but — a presidential first — in an Internet video as well.

The YouTube address was the first step of an administration
which promises to operate with unprecedented transparency
and to keep the new and young voters drawn to his candidacy
engaged in his presidency.

Obama also plans to take part in question-and-answer
sessions posted on YouTube, a transition spokesman said.
"I think the analogy is both obvious and awesome," said
Jeremy Grace, a Rice University professor and political expert.
"This is FDR's (President Franklin Delano
Roosevelt's) fireside chats for the 21st century.
Above and beyond sort of changing into the YouTube format,
I think you could speak pretty easily to the fact that
seeing someone makes you more likely to trust that person.
I think he's going to be using this medium to do what FDR
did and reach people directly during rather tumultuous times."

Grace said by delivering the "Appleside or laptop-side chats,"
over the YouTube format, the promise of inclusion Obama
touted throughout his campaign continues into his
administration.

"From the very beginning, Obama wanted a true grass-roots
movement, and this sustains that," Grace said.

In the four-minute address, Obama discussed the global
financial forum under way in Washington and said he intends
to work with world leaders to shore up the global economy.

"And yet, as we act in concert with other nations, we must
also act immediately here at home to address America's own
economic crisis," Obama said.

Obama urged Congress to address the nation's still-ailing
economy when it reconvenes this week.

"If Congress does not pass an immediate plan that gives the
economy the boost it needs, I will make it my first
order of business as president," Obama said.

The significance of the address goes beyond the message
to Obama's trailblazing use of the medium to deliver it.

More than 23 million people under 30 voted in the
presidential election, splitting 2-1 in Obama's favor.
Obama wants to keep young people engaged. Using
YouTube and other "new media" is one way to do that, said
Kat Barr, the political outreach director with the Rock
the Vote campaign.

"I think that there's a huge opportunity to continue the
robust youth involvement in the campaign into governing with
things like YouTube and other new media," Barr said.

"The important thing, just as in campaigns, with any
government official is that it's important to combine the
use of new media with substantive action on issues," she
said. "Number one, is to address the issues they got out
and voted on, things like Iraq, college affordability,
health care and other issues that young people care about."

Peter Boumgarden, 25, a medical student at Washington
University, said he watched the address.

He added he intends to make Obama's weekly presidential
address part of his weekend routine. "I don't think I've
ever listened to a Democratic address," Boumgarden said.
"Our generation doesn't listen to radio, or tap into it as
much as we do the YouTube format."

Obama will have to go beyond a radio address on YouTube
to provide the increased transparency he says he'll bring
to office, said Ellen Miller, director of the nonpartisan
Sunlight Foundation, a Washington-based think tank
that focuses on open government.

"Transparency is a nice four-syllable word, but there
has to be more substance behind it," Miller said.

Super Cool!

HOW COOL!!!

So I did an interview with local news 2 yesterday and it got picked up on MSNBC. Yahoo!!! In actuality, the interview was pretty in-depth but they cut it into what I think are two pretty meaningless sound bites but whatever...I made national news, check it out.

Political signs defaced on Election Day
Jeremy Grace, associate director of academic advising, is quoted in an article and story on Election Day vandalism.
MSNBC.com
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27543936/
KPRC-TV
http://www.criticalmention.com/components/url_gen/play_asx.php?
clip_info=699663021%7C25%7C70%5E699664118%7C0%7C70%
5E699664896%7C0%7C18