[ Thanks to gvenditto for this link.
]
“Bob Schieffer of CBS News made a good point on ‘The Charlie
Rose Show’ last week. He said that successful presidents have all
skillfully exploited the dominant medium of their times. The
Founders were eloquent writers in the age of pamphleteering.
Franklin D. Roosevelt restored hope in 1933 by mastering radio. And
John F. Kennedy was the first president elected because of his
understanding of television.“Will 2008 bring the first Internet president? Last time, Howard
Dean and later John Kerry showed that the whole idea of ‘early
money’ is now obsolete in presidential politics. The Internet lets
candidates who catch fire raise millions in small donations
practically overnight. That’s why all the talk of Hillary Clinton’s
‘war chest’ making her the front runner for 2008 is the most
hackneyed punditry around. Money from wealthy donors remains the
essential ingredient in most state and local campaigns, but ‘free
media’ shapes the outcome of presidential races, and the Internet
is the freest media of all…”