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Liveblogging BlogLeft Massachusetts - Breakout Sessions and Wrap-up Email Print

By Wes F
12/10/2005 02:23:00 PM EST

I'm setting up this posting so that we can do a liveblog on the breakout sessions at BlogLeft Massachusetts. The original thread is up to about 26 comments, so this will take some of the pressure off that thread.

The three breakout sessions are:

Getting Involved with the Massachusetts Democratic Party, led by Kate Donaghue (co-chair of field services for the MA Dems)

HR 4194 and Other Boondoggles of Online Free Speech, led by Stirling Newberry (BOPnews.com)

Beyond Blogging: Where Will the Technology Take Us?, led by Jon Garfunkel (civilities.net)

I'll be attending Stirling's breakout and posting updates as it goes along. Feel free to comment.

Let me just say as well that, as someone who has only lived in Massachusetts since August, that this event does my heart proud. Lynne has done an AMAZING job putting this together, and everyone here has been friendly and open to conversation. Every state needs to get a gathering like this together - it could be the groundwork for a new, state-centered progressive blogosphere.

Later on in the day we will be discussing what the next step is. You can probably look forward to at LEAST one of these annually. You owe it to yourself to come if you can - and if you can't, well, that's why we liveblog. Update [2005-12-10 14:26:54 by Wes F]:: Stirling is talking about Rep. Marty Meehan (D-MA) and his well-intentioned but misguided attempt to treat the blogosphere as a top-down, corporate-centered media outlet. Update [2005-12-10 15:41:46 by Wes F]: I'm expanding this to include the wrap-up discussion.


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Liveblogging BlogLeft Massachusetts - Breakout Sessions and Wrap-up | 17 comments (17 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)
Continuing my commentary on online free speech (none / 0)
From the oriinal thread (I'll link later).

"People at the top fear the public..." says that they see internet movements can do things like destroy the career of Dan Rather.

How do we make sure democracy moves more into the hands of the people, but without these kind of cumbersome regulations? - Stirling

Jeff: Who got to Meehan to say "will you introduce this?"

Stirling: Meehan and Shays are genuinely afraid of the top-down coordination...they look at internet as broadcasting...are linked now to this bill, they will appear to not budge, we need to break down support for this bill, then they will compromise (and declare victory that this is waht they wanted in the first place).

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 02:30:49 PM EST

Meehan bill as precident (none / 0)
Good point by attendee: Since there aren't a lot of bills regulating internet (speech, etc) so this bill could be used as precident, so there's that danger that it could influence future regulation of the internet.

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 02:38:21 PM EST

How do we create structure (none / 0)
that doesn't strangle, it's that structure that lends credibility - Stirling

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 02:39:51 PM EST

Can someone change (none / 0)
my comments from ediorial to Topical?? I keep screwing that up.

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 02:40:23 PM EST

How do we make it so blogs have more credibility (none / 0)
We need to have our own way - th emedia has a way, the academic has its way (peer review)

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 02:44:11 PM EST

Actions of the MA blogs on Meehan-Shays (none / 0)
Most pols (Dems at least) want to be on the right side of this issue, they just don't know what the right side is.

Meehan wants to be a Senator eventually, we need to write about how we couldn't see supporting him for that run if this bill passes (especially me, seeing as I'm smack in his district)

Need to go at this as an activist v activist - going to be hard to make a public awareness on this complex issue

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 02:58:33 PM EST

Need to prove (none / 0)
Need to prove to pols that we can help them if they're on the right side of our issue, can hurt them if they're on the other side.

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 03:00:02 PM EST

Point by attendee (none / 0)
Getting face time is the next big thing - we've done or are doing the deconstruction of the situation, we need to talk to state party members, candidates, etc

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 03:03:23 PM EST

Fascinating Subject (none / 0)
We as bloggers are creating peer-reviewed politics; HR 4194 would impact that in a negative fashion. Peer-reviewed politics takes care of the "truth" issues - how quickly do people jump on astroturfing on blogs by corporations?

WF

Walk in Brain - c'mon, you know you wanna.

by Wes F on 12/10/2005 03:03:39 PM EST

Need to get link to Meehan to get him to listen (none / 0)
(Point brought up that Meehan's recent round of town halls, he talked only about Iraq war)

Link to Meehan: blogs were where all the real information about the Iraq war and its runup, and this bill would hurt that community, if this bill had been in place, we would not have been able to do what we did.

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 03:10:05 PM EST

Tying in everything else (none / 0)
When Meehan hosts a town hall on, say, Iraq, how do we make it clear that what we do is tied to this?

Well, where was the first support for the anti-war movement? What was the only outlet for those who had the opposite view on Iraq?

Blogs.

If HR 4194 was in place, the discussion that is JUST NOW taking place among our elected officials and the citizens would not have been able to get started - and the discussion would not then have grown in the way it has. Kos, for example, could not have done what he did with Dean; ditto Stirling and Clark. Meehan is strongly opposed to the Iraq war - the blogosphere is giving him the information and support to speak out. His own bill would make that impossible.

WF

Walk in Brain - c'mon, you know you wanna.

by Wes F on 12/10/2005 03:12:00 PM EST

"How to get involved" breakout summary (none / 0)
#1 important: SHOW UP

#2: know the rules of the game (DTCs, etc)

#3: Call to convention, rules, is ONLINE now, so blogger go read!

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 03:27:43 PM EST

Summary of "Online Free Speech" by Chris (none / 0)
Stirling caught us up to speed on Meehan-Shays:
Problems with it, targeted towards our sorts of websites, if passes, will have quelching effect on political discourse on line

Need to point out to pols that what the internet is - one can tell the difference between "astroturf" and real discussion.

Use thomas.loc.gov to read the bill or any other bills! Has status, sponsors, etc as well. (Added by Jeff)

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 03:31:24 PM EST

The battle's done, and we sort of won... (none / 0)
...so we sound our victory cheer.

Where Do We Go From Here?

(Ok, how many of you caught the reference?)

First thing we're looking at doing is meeting again in six months! I couldn't agree more.

Some are proposing technological discussion forums, candidate forums, and credentialing issues.

WF

Walk in Brain - c'mon, you know you wanna.

by Wes F on 12/10/2005 03:43:38 PM EST

Oooh! Me, pick me!!! (none / 0)
NICE!!!

That's from the Buffy the Vampire Slayer musical episode, "Once More With Feeling."

by Mariposa17 on 12/10/2005 09:37:51 PM EST

[ Parent ]
Other ideas (none / 0)
Blogging the convention - issues of credentials

Are we journalists, activists, or both?

How about an aggregator that shows a map of Massachusetts by town - you click on that town, you get all the Dem elected officials/town/ward commmittees/lefty blogs?

How do we recruit more bloggers? Should we?

WF

Walk in Brain - c'mon, you know you wanna.

by Wes F on 12/10/2005 03:50:29 PM EST

Summary on "Future of blogging" breakout (none / 0)
Stregths and flaws of rating systems, current "toilet paper roll" of posting in a line needs to give way to new ways of interactive blogging [Lynne's note: Like Political Cortex!]

Talked about how to find the things most useful to you in the millions of stuff out there.

Jon takes mic: Challenges of "solitary" blogging: corrdination is top down. Talked about tagging systems, so you can find them later. Technorati, Delicious, etc. One idea also mentioned, there is no tag today for zip code, you could find what's happening in your state, town with a system that includes that concept. Education of ourselves, how to go about implimenting new technologies. He hopes to do going forward, as we get to state party level organizing, trying to embrace new technologies that achieve results.

My lefty MA blog: Left in Lowell

by Lynne on 12/10/2005 04:04:39 PM EST

Liveblogging BlogLeft Massachusetts - Breakout Sessions and Wrap-up | 17 comments (17 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)
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