allaboutadvocacy.com

Convention…or un-convention?

Just read some interesting news about Google’s “Big Tent” plans for the Democratic and Republican conventions — which will have 500 and 200 credentialled bloggers working onsite, respectively. For $100 each, Google will provide Net access, workspace, couches, candy buffet, smoothies and massages — which is almost like working at the Googleplex for a day!

 It’s a smart move for Google, of course, but John Murrell’s comment below really got me thinking:

>>> With all that coddling, the bloggers should be in fine form to try to do what mainstream media outlets have trouble doing at such carefully scripted events — dig up some news. <<<

On the surface, that sounds fairly traditional. Simply the difference between mainstream/broadcast news and microstream/narrowcast news coverage. But with 500 or 200 “embedded” bloggers — and traditional media likely following their lead as much as the reverse — could it actually impact the nature of the event? Could it turn the stodgy, overly scripted, boring conventions of recent history into a more raucous old-school debate with real issues being argued and discussed in the light of day by real people?

As a political junkie and a news junkie, I’ll hold out some hope that social media might help — or more likely, force — the parties to “loosen up” a bit at the conventions. If not, maybe we can get some of the rule-breaking social engineers who gave us “un-conferences” in business to apply their talents to create the country’s first “un-conventions” for 2012.