Dave Winer, who has done more to promote weblogs than anyone on the planet, points us to this interesting piece in The Scotsman: "2003 was the year that politicians finally started to understand that the Internet is a powerful tool for spreading their messages."
"Every political animal -- from George W. Bush downwards -- began to notice the potential for communicating directly with voters without irritating media types getting in the way. The political weblog was born."
PC World: "Welcome to the age of the wired campaign."
Update: Ralph Reed makes a great observation in this Cox News Service piece: "It's ironic that the technology of the 21st century is taking us back to the politics of what most thought was a bygone era, which is grass-roots."
Update II: A Hartford Courant piece on political weblogs says they are "scoured by politicians, reporters and lobbyists to catch up on news they haven't had time to get themselves and to grab an information edge in the age of the 24-hour news cycle."
"And as their popularity grows, so does their influence on the tone and trajectory of political coverage, in the process transforming how politicians get their messages out, setting the agenda for editors and reporters across the country and showcasing political writing at small- and medium-size papers in ways never before seen."
