Left of College Station will be covering the protest and counter-protest at Texas A&M University during President Barack Obama's speech to the Points of Light Institute.
Stay tuned for a report on the day's events, photographs from around campus and the protests, and video interviews from both the protest and the counter-protests.
Journalism is an important piece of our democracy: the fourth estate. However, over the last several years both the economy and the rise of technology have had a negative effect on the backbone of journalism: newspapers. Around the country more and more newspapers are in danger of shutting down, even in large markets such as San Francisco. It is also possible that a large city could be without a newspaper in the coming years. Newspapers in major cities have been able to switch to an online only format, such as the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. However, in medium and smaller cities, it could prove difficult for a newspaper to move to an online only format.
According to the Burnt Orange Report, newspaper publishers in Texas are considering sharing their content; this is the possible outcome of editors under pressure to produce news with less and less staff. Local media outlets have covered state and local politics less and less over the years; instead newspapers and television stations have focused on crime. In turn there are less and less journalist covering state politics in Austin, which means that politicians, lobbyist, and influential citizens will be questioned less and less.
After a four week hiatus from blogging I am returning to the blogosphere; as the newest member of the Texas Progressive Alliance and with a refocus onto the local political landscape Left of College Station is back on the air.
Tomorrow night I will be attending a meet and greet with Amy Goodman, the host of Pacifica Radio's Democracy Now!, before she gives a town hall lecture in Bryan-College Station. Democracy Now! has become the leading voice of the progressive alternative media, and most recently Goodman was arrested outside the Republican National Convention while reporting on anti-war protest. Her newest book, Standing up to the Madness: Ordinary Heroes in Extraordinary Times, was released this month.
Goodman will be at Square One Bistro from 6:00pm - 7:00pm tomorrow night, for a meet and greet that will include light refreshments and an autographed copy of her book. The at the Neal Recreation Center from 7:30pm - 8:30pm Goodman will be appearing at a town hall lecture, and signing copies of her book afterwards. Left of College Station will be reporting on the meet and greet and the town hall lecture tomorrow night after the event; stay tuned to Left of College Station throughout the night for live mobile updates!
There are many driving forces that explain the "why" of Burnt Orange Report, and one of them is our love for technology. Matt was one of only twenty-five Social Media Award winners in Texas for a reason. KT is sought out -- from people in Austin, in Texas, and around the country -- for his technological expertise because he was one of the first to crash the gates after the first starting gun of the Netroots political movement was sounded many years ago.
I wasn't like that. I grew up as an English major at UT who loved to read and loved to write. I don't use Tivo. I only started using Twitter a couple months ago when it hit its mini-critical mass awareness. I'm still learning all the functions of Facebook, Google Reader, Delicious, et. all. I came to write for BOR at the urging of a friend because of my interest and passion for politics, not for my interest or passion in this new technological tidal wave -- a force so strong I often feel like I'm struggling just to keep my head above water.
It was only recently that I've stopped struggling and begun to learn how to truly surf the web.
Over the past year or so, I've learned to embrace the unfathomable largeness of the online world and treat it with a spirit of exploration and hope, instead of a lethargy of trepidation and fear. Though I don't think I'll ever quite match KT or Matt's impressive aptitude with the subject matter -- at times I think that they breathe binary -- I have found a way to turn my eagerness and curiousity into productive learning and practical application.
Yes, as has been the case with every adaptation throughout history, education has empowered better understanding of the internet and an ability to work within its existing power -- or, as I said before, to truly surf the web. Education continues to be the silver bullet -- a true instrument of progress that is immensely profitable to those who have the opportunity and the desire to harness its limitless power.
A lot of my education comes from working so closely with KT, Matt, and the entire BOR crew. A couple of the classes I've taken at school -- including Nicco Mele's course on digitial media, politics, and power -- have gone a long way towards enhancing my entry to the online world. But I've also found a number of terrific websites that have given me an opportunity to think and explore new ideas about technology in ways I'd never considered before.
Therefore, in the interest of paying it forward, today's links -- or "clearing the cache" as the excellent website techPresident puts it -- are focused on stories gathered from various sources on new innovations and technology. Please add your stories in the comments, too, and pay attention to our new "BOR Reader" on the top-right of our page as KT, Matt and I share technology stories -- as well as political stories -- with everyone.
Happy surfing -- and if you like the sites, you should sign up for the RSS feeds to follow them regularly:
Legislation 2.0.2 (techPresident): An excellent story about how some legislators aren't just goofing off with new technology like Twitter, but actually using the internet to solict input on how they can do their jobs better (for example -- Senator Claire McCaskill asks how to better do government contracting oversight and is taking cues from the responses).
While Microsoft was busy rolling out a new version of Internet Explorer Thursday Google has been busy pushing the boundaries of not just the web browser, but what the web itself is capable of doing. [snip]
And Google Chrome is certainly not the only browser encouraging developers to experiment with both the browser and the web. Mozilla has an entire division of the company — Mozilla Labs — devoted to the very same sort of envelop pushing.
Follow that link and scroll down the page to watch a video showing what Google Chrome can do.
List of Web 2.0 Resources: This PDF has a great bibliography -- including a number of online white papers that it directly links to -- that serve as an archive to explain the theory of Web 2.0. A link you should bookmark and return to time and time again.
Twitalyzer: This amazing website measures your performance on Twitter. Almost scary.
What is Web 2.0? (Tim O'Reilly): Finally, I have to provide the link to the definitive article on Web 2.0 -- written three and a half years ago. If you only read one thing and really want to begin understanding the whole web/technology movement, read that piece.
That's probably enough for now. What else is out there that is good to share? Please provide context and leave links in the comments...
(Hopefully this primary and convention will inspire others back home across Texas to lead in their home counties! - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
During the Executive Meeting of the Brazos County Democratic Party, I was nominated and elected to be the Democratic Party Chairman of Precinct 53.
But, I was not the only person to be elected to a leadership position. The Brazos County Democratic Party Chair resigned and Maggie Charleton, previously Party Executive Director, was elected to be the Democratic Party Chair for the remained of this term. Linda Coats was elected as Democratic Party Vice Chair, Rosemary Swanson was elected as Recording Secretary, and Coats was also elected as Social Secretary.
It has been an interesting ride, from first standing in a crowd in Austin watching Senator Barack Obama speak in front of the Texas State Capitol Building to sitting in a crowd in a room caucusing for Senator Obama and Senator Hillary Clinton. Then the journey continued, from being an Obama delegate at the Brazos County Democratic Convention to being an alternate Obama delegate at the Texas State Democratic Convention. Now, as I watch the Democratic National Convention, I am have moved into a place in the Democratic Party where I can be more than just a voice on a blog but a party leader pushing for change.
I have thrown myself into the democratic process. I am chairman of Precinct 53, I am a staff sponsor of the Blinn College Democrats, and I am the publisher of a liberal blog in one of the most conservative places in Texas. After serving my country spending eight years in the military, I want to serve my country by helping to shape the direction that we take. Whether that is calling voters and urging them to vote Democrat in November or it is helping to raise money for candidates like Donnie Dippel, Congressman Chet Edwards, and Representative Rick Noriega.
It is going to be an interesting journey into November...
Today's myth -- that all bloggers are young, inexperienced, and have no business weighing in on these important political issues. As if the talking heads on TV and political consultants that run campaigns are infallible, or something.
Also during this segment, Scarborough attacked liberal bloggers for correcting McCain's error, saying they were probably "just sitting there, eating their Cheetos" and saying, "Let me google Anbar Awakening!" He added, "Dust flying - Cheeto dust flying all over. They're wiping it on their bare chest while their underwear - you know, their Hanes."
The absurdity of such a statement is best articulated by highlighting the age and experience of some other progressive Texas bloggers who are members of the Texas Progressive Alliance. While there's often a focus on Burnt Orange Report -- and you can read about our age & experience here -- the truth is we're just one group of dozens of active bloggers in Texas. And what we lack in age we make up for with experience.
But this isn't about BOR -- this is about the Netroots as a whole. With that said, the following is based on feedback from our TPA group - some chose to remain anonymous, so are identified as "Female/Male A/B/C/etc."
Here's the experience of Texas bloggers - in their own words:
Ted McLaughlin
I am 61 years old, but still feel 26. I am a juvenile parole officer and have worked in various aspects of law enforcement since 1976. I have a B.S. in Social Sciences from a church college (Texas Wesleyan University), but I am an atheist.
In the late sixties and early seventies, I was a hippie, and that still guides my political beliefs. I was a state delegate for Jesse Jackson twice, and attended four other state conventions as a delegate. I have been a Democratic precinct chairman in Tarrant County, and currently hold that position in Potter County.
Anna Brosovic
I'm 35 years old, a tech worker, born and raised in the Deep South by a Dixiecrat Dad. My political awakening came around the time of Iran Contra. My family was deeply effected by Reagan's economic policies, so I hated Saint Ronnie by the time he left office. I did more work than I could detail here during the 1990s.
Then the bastards stole the election in 200, and I thought, "hey, we're now a banana republic, but f*** it cause this a**hole's only getting four years." During that first summer of the Bush regime I was comforted by his low 40s approval ratings, and then of course 9/11 happened. I started my blog that day and have been railing publicly against the Bushies ever since.
With Jerome Armstrong and Aziz Poonawalla, I started the Howard Dean movement online. I've put boots on the ground or generally volunteered for at least 8 house races, 2 state senate races, 2 us house races, 2 primary/presidential campaigns, and I'm sure there will be many more in the future.
Female A
I'm 55. I was in middle management in the oil and gas industry for 12 years. I was raised by a pull yourself up by the bootstraps, conservative, single mother who used to yell, "Fornicator!" when JFK appeared on TV. She was, however, for equal rights. But, she informed me that she wouldn't help me with college because I could just get married--that worked out so well for her. She felt it was more important to help my brothers get an education so they could support their wives. Neither of them did so.
When I was 5, I became an equal right activist because I saw a tiny African American boy trying to get a drink, but he couldn't reach the water fountain. I lifted him up so he could get a drink. His mother shrieked in horror and fear, yanked him away and literally ran from the store. When my mother explained the "white" and "colored" drinking fountains, I felt a profound sense of shame.
Alexander Wolfe
I'm 34, an attorney, married with two kids. I'm half Cherokee by my dad's side, so I either am or am not a minority depending on which side you're looking at.
I am relatively inexperienced at politics. I'd say it was the rip off that was the 2000 election, combined with the continuing idiocy of this administration and Republicans in general in the face of some very serious and difficult problems, that drove me to become more partisan and ideological. And I'd say it was the trend towards easy access blogging for anybody anywhere that finally led me to start putting some of my rants online.
Female B
I'm a 46 year-old white woman, who after a politically active youth in high school and college got sucked into the necessity of being an adult and making a living. My drama production degree didn't exactly have employers pounding down my door. Eventually, I backed into a software development career, and started to relax a bit.
2000's selection enraged me. 9/11 terrified me. I got drawn in to the news, despite the gnawing feeling of helplessness that anything I could do meant any damn thing at all.
In the run up to the 2004 election, I discovered Daily Kos and Atrios, and suddenly I had a focus for my re-awakened political consciousness. I started commenting, sending money, and then writing diaries. Suddenly, instead of just helpless, unfocused rage and despair, I had a fight. I will be fighting this fight the rest of my life.
Because I'll be damned if I'm going to leave this mess for the next generation to fix.
There's much, much more to read. Click "There's more" on the link below to learn more...
This has very little to do with politics, and a whole lot to do with social behavior, how we think, and how humans are going to process data in the 21st century. I mean -- a rational argument that scientific theories are no longer necessary?
WOW. This was the most interesting thing I've read in months. Read about it below the fold.
This is an unofficial part of our "Shattering Blogger Stereotypes" series. The myth shattered -- that bloggers hate the traditional media. The following is a report on an extensive study I completed as part of my coursework at the JFK School of Government at Harvard University. -- Phillip
In the early twentieth century, five Russian-born Jews living in Manhattan passed out some leaflets denouncing President Woodrow Wilson. They were accused of violating the Espionage Act. They were arrested for criticizing the government, and ultimately -- in Abrams vs. the United States -- the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the arrests.
Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, in his dissent, wrote that the leaflets created no real danger, arguing instead that they embraced one of the central tenants of the constitution: a "marketplace of ideas"
[...] The ultimate good desired is better reached by free trade in ideas...that the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the market, and that truth is the only ground upon which their wishes safely can be carried out. That at any rate is the theory of our Constitution.
Today, in the early twenty-first century, information consumers seek a free trade of ideas much broader than what the market has traditionally offered. Print and television journalism competes with online journalism, where electronic leaflets travel much farther than the streets of Manhattan. YouTube videos, blogs, and Facebook messages are all relevant players in today’s marketplace of ideas.
Texas’ newspapers are adapting to the new online medium in noticeably different ways, especially when it comes to political reporting. An examination of the nearly 1,000 blog posts featured on the respective political blogs of the Houston Chronicle, Dallas Morning News, and Austin American-Statesman during the month leading up to the Texas primary shows that formal conventions of journalism often do not make their way from the paper pages to the web pages of Texas’ leading newspapers.
For those of us counting on the successful adaptation of Texas’ political reporting in the rapidly expanding realm of web-based media, the loss of formal convention may be a very, very good thing.
Introduction: About the Study
The purpose of the study wasn’t to determine which paper had the best online coverage – it was to examine what kind of coverage is out there in the first place. Reporters from each of these papers were interviewed for the original study; however, their quotes and input will not be directly attributed here, since the original study was conducted for academic purposes and to ensure their anonymity is respected.
The study examined at length the methods and attitudes of three of Texas’ major newspaper political blogs, focusing on the time period after Super Tuesday (February 6) through just before the Texas primary (March 3):
It should be noted that the Chronicle maintains several political blogs, including Texas on the Potomac, which has a national focus. For the purposes of the study, only the posts on Texas Politics, which has a Texas focus, were tracked, since most of the print reporters that cover Texas politics only blog on the Texas Politics blog. The study was completed for the Harvard Kennedy School of Government course, “Press, Politics, and Public Policy,” as taught by Professor Tom Fiedler, former Editor of the Miami Herald. As the general election approaches, similar studies will be conducted for comparison. Finding an Online Voice: The Choice between Formal and Informal Language
In 1961, Theodore White’s book, “The Making of the President: 1960” set the standard for political and campaign reporting. Ever since that time, political journalists have used White’s model – along with the very traditional “who, what, where, when, why, and how” formula – to create and sustain a formal language in their writing. The use of traditional, non-changing formal language signals a context of objectivity and authority for most readers.
However, many of Texas newspapers’ political blogs have abandoned traditional conventions in favor of a much more informal, opinion-based language. As Chart #1 shows below, the more posts that are written on Texas newspapers’ political blogs, the greater the chance that the language used will be informal.
Chart #1: Type of Language Used from 2/6 thru 3/3
Houston Chronicle
Austin American- Statesman
Dallas Morning News
Total / Average
# of total blog posts
172
304
510
986
Formal
61.6%
46.1%
23.3%
43.7%
Informal
25.0%
50.3%
71.2%
48.8%
Mixed
13.4%
3.6%
5.5%
7.5%
For the purposes of the study, formal language is considered “traditional newspaper” writing, often in 3rd-person. Informal language is considered “conversational-style” writing, which may combine first and second-person language and feature humor and/or editorializing. Mixed language-posts consists primarily of formal language but contain editorializing, humor, or a call for reader response not normally found with the use of formal language.
The Dallas Morning News reporters wrote nearly three times as many posts for their blog than their Houston Chronicle counterparts; not surprisingly, their language was much more informal. Strengthening the observed correlation, the Austin American-Statesman finished in the middle of each category.
Stereotype: Almost all bloggers are male; there are no female bloggers.
The stereotype that all bloggers are male is one of the odder, most obviously false stereotypes that pervade many conversations about the Netroots. I think it's most appropriate to tackle first, because breaking it apart breaks down many of the gender-specific roles that are unfairly assigned to bloggers.
National Scope: Huffington, Malkin, Wonkette, Gawker
Time and time again, reporters write articles that reproduce the divisions they claim to be questioning. They ask why there aren't more well-known political bloggers who are women, and refuse to mention widely-read counterexamples. They ask why the best-known women bloggers are feminist, not political, bloggers (as if feminism isn't politics), and quote women identified as feminist bloggers to make their point.
MissLaura is one of several front-page writers for DailyKos that is female. Additionally, the Executive Editor (#2) for the site -- Susan G. -- is a female. And while it may be easy to roll off names like Markos, Chris Bowers, Jerome Armstrong, Atrios, and Matt Stoller, think of all these other national bloggers you (undoubtedly) know of:
Arianna Huffington, of Huffington Post -- As MissLaura put it, Arianna is "building a freaking empire" with the HuffPo. More so than any online news magazine, Huffington Post is exploding with influence, breaking stories, and power.
Wonkette --The ultimate snark-blog, Wonkette is one of the sharpest, most consistently entertaining political blogs in the country. She's pioneered a style for countless blogs across the country (including some right here in Texas).
Elizabeth Spiers, founding editor of Gawker -- When she starts a blog, regardless of the target, people flock to the site. More importantly, like Wonkette, her style is mimicked by many but matched by few.
Michelle Malkin -- Does she drive me up the wall with her right-wing wackiness? Of course. But her columns are syndicated in newspapers across the country. There's no denying her power.
Jane Hamsher - Founder of firedoglake -- which has more visitors than almost any other national blog -- Hamsher has built one of the most responsive online communities in the country. Firedoglage has interviews with prominent candidates across the country, and their press secretary resides here in Austin.
These are just some of the hugely successful, national female bloggers I'm familiar with. If you want to learn about more, follow this link to an informative, "top-50" style rundown.
Texas Scope: Texas Kaos, In the Pink Texas, Muse, & More
Female prominence in the Netroots isn't limited to national case studies. Here in Texas, we have numerous active female bloggers that provide incredible coverage of local and national politics.
Anna Brosovic -- What can be said about Anna? She founded the Texas Progressive Alliance. She, along with Jerome Armstrong and a few others, helped start the Howard Dean movement. She's prominently featured in Nate Wilcox's new book, Netroots Rising. She's a rockstar, and she is someone all of us in the Netroots are endlessly proud of.
Texas Kaos -- Under the leadership of boadicea and TxSharon, Texas Kaos is one of the longest lasting blogs in Texas. Often covering stories we overlook, their reach to tens of thousands of political activists is important for the progressive movement in Texas.
Musings -- Led by Martha Griffin (a board member of TexBlog PAC and campaign manager for one of the hottest State House races in Texas -- Sherrie Matula vs. incumbent Rep. John Davis), Musings is a great place to read any news out of the Fort Bend and Harris County area.
Eileen Smith (In the Pink Texas and Texas Monthly's "Poll Dancing") -- After managing ITPT for years, Eileen was invited to work as online editor for TexasMonthly.com. Her posts -- often filled with biting humor, sarcasm, and cross-self-promotion -- are widely read in Texas. Often quoted in many newspaper and television reports, her influence (as much as she tries to pretend its not there) is very real.
I feel obliged to note that Burnt Orange Report, unfortunately, does not have any female bloggers writing on the front page of our site -- though it's not for lack of trying. Every time we ask for new writers, we beg for female applications. I've even cornered several female friends to write for our site. But we can't force it -- so other than a few past writers, we have no female front-page writers. Though some of our best and most active community commenters and diarists are females.
Please apply, if interested.
Conclusion: Prominent Women Bloggers Are Influential in the Netroots
There's no doubt that there still lies an imbalance of male vs. female bloggers in the Netroots. That is an imbalance that exists in many sources and places of business -- including newspaper rooms, where many "firsts" are still being cracked.
However, the imbalance is not what many would think. Female bloggers are wielding great influence in the Netroots from all angles (progressive, conservative, business, and more). The stereotype that only men blog is inaccurate, and one you shouldn't need to repeat again.
