Liberal Democrats Online

How long will it be until we see a political version of the celebrity tracker website, Gawker Stalker? Although celebrities consider such sites an invasion of privacy, could they be beneficial in politics?

The lives of congressional members are already mapped out in minute detail. One of Senator Jon Tester’s (D-MT) first acts on arriving in Washington was to publish his schedule online. It’s not a great leap from publishing written daily schedules to publishing daily schedules on maps. The advent of Google My Maps makes this easier than ever for congressional staff.

Some congressional members would no doubt be squeamish about revealing so much publicly, but many others would welcome the opportunity. It is possible to imagine a group such as the Open House Project taking up this cause and publishing the map on their website. Those congressional members who initially refuse to take part will ultimately be forced to in order to remove the air of suspicion hanging over them.

Could this be the best method of restoring accountability in Washington?

Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) took matters, and literally the camera, into his own hands yesterday when he announced he would produce the first video “of a committee hearing from the chairman’s perspective.” Markey, who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, made the announcement before a startled audience at the beginning of yesterday’s hearing, titled Digital Future of the United States: Part V, The Future of Video, featuring YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley.

Thanks to Andrew Noyes at National Journal’s Tech Daily Dose who pointed out a great innovation by Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE). After returning from a recent tour of Iraq, which the Senator helpfully explains is called a CODEL (congressional delegation - getit?), the Senator used Google’s ‘My Maps’ and Google Earth to inform constituents about the tour. Instead of merely recording his experiences on a blog the Senator added blog-like entries to his Iraq CODEL map, including photos and videos.

Mapping devices such as Google Maps, Mapquest and Yahoo Maps have been wildly successful because they provide visual context. Sen. Nelson’s Iraq CODEL map is a terrific example of this. Showing constituents where he has been and what he has done is far more powerful than merely telling them.

Crucially, Sen. Nelson’s Iraq CODEL map also provides accountability, a particular concern in the post-Abramoff era. In the wake of super-lobbyist Jack Abramoff’s conviction there was a lot of criticism of the many trips taken by congressional members, particularly those funded by lobbyists. A majority of the public perceive these trips as frivolous, but many congressional members argue strongly in favor of them because they see them as important educational opportunities who find it tough to escape the beltway bubble.

There is some truth to this, but with public trust in politicians at an all time low they are reluctant to accept this argument. Sen. Nelson’s Iraq CODEL map provides a way of justifying such trips whether they be at the expense of the taxpayer or lobbyists. By detailing his trip so extensively constituents can be confident Sen. Nelson’s trip was worthwhile.

Kudos to Sen. Nelson and his staff for recognizing this and taking this important step towards open government.

Abi Tatton profiled the map on CNN’s The Situation Room.

Funny viral videos featuring American politicians are nothing new. However, they have mostly lampooned politicians and not one has been created by a politician themselves. Consciously creating humorous viral video is very hard. Could Democrat presidential candidate Bill Richardson be the first? 88,456 views, 260 comments, 15 honors on YouTube later and still going strong…

First Ming had a Google map, then did a Skypecast, next joined Facebook, and now he has a Flickr badge on his website.

Whatever next?

We managed to get all the kit working in time for the fringe meeting last night - with Martin Tod and Ed Trelinski projected up on the screen - and able to deliver their presentations from the other end of the country (Martin) and from Washington DC (Ed).

Many thanks to Simon Hanson and Jon Ball at the Harrogate end for wiring it all together.

And a big thank you to the clever people at Skype and Festoon for writing the software that made it all work!

LDO was, as far as we know, the first Lib Dem organisation to have a speaker join a fringe meeting via the internet (Steve Webb MP at Brighton in 2002). But at this Spring’s conference we’re going one better.

At next Saturday’s fringe meeting, it will have one (or possibly two) speakers joining via video.

We’re intending to use Skype for the connection - a bit like the Skypecast that Ming Campbell did for the Taking Power policy consultation.

The theme is ‘Lessons from the US mid-terms’ and the confirmed speakers are Mark Pack - the party’s Head of Innovation, and Martin Tod, PPC for Winchester and one of the founders of Flock Together.

Details of time and place can be found on Flock Together.

Hot on the heels of Google’s buyout of Youtube comes further controversy for the video file sharing world.

Not another spoof video lampooning Conservative leader David Cameron, but much more seriously, a Labour MP has raised concerns about violent content after an assault which took place in his Hartlepool constituency was found online.

Another challenge to YouTube has come from Japan, where media companies complained over music and video clips that were being distributed over YouTube without permission.

To avoid a string of costly court cases, it may be necessary for Google and Youtube to screen videos before allowing them to be published, which would add costs and delay to the emerging business.

BBC reports

Google Buyout: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6034577.stm

Illegal clips cut http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6069692.stm

There’s a increasing number of innovative new Lib Dem sites coming out currently. You can check out the latest Lib Dem blogs at LibDemBlogs.co.uk or read a review of the latest postings at LiberalReview.com. Check out the latest Lib Dem meetings around the country at Flock Together. Finally, why not build a single-issue site for your local party at campaigns.libdems.org.uk.

LDO paid a big chunk of the old list server, so it’s good to see that the new party list server is being launched today.

Pop over to http://lists.libdems.org.uk to sign up to a few lists or register to set up your own.