The National Journal runs an interesting piece by Daniel Glover on how blogs rose to power in Washington, D.C.
The lead example is the Bush administration's efforts to "reform" social security which ultimately failed because Bush's foes "had a powerful new tool known as the Web log at their disposal, and they seized it to great effect... These days, there is little serious talk in Washington about immediately reforming Social Security, but there is plenty of chatter about blogs -- and with good reason. The technology has taken firm root in the capital. "
Especially interesting is the discussion of how advocacy groups are reaching blog readers through advertising, in such places as the Political Insider Ad Network. A related interview with Henry Copeland of BlogAds discusses the discovery of blogs by groups trying to influence politicians and their staffs, journalists, lobbyists and other insiders.