“Were it not for the Internet, Barack Obama would not be President,” declared Arianna Huffington from the stage at Web 2.0 Summit, the day after the election. In “The Web and Politics” session, moderator John Heileman explores the new world of running for office–and governing once you win–with Huffington, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, and veteran politico Joe Trippi.
Politicians and pundits love to talk, and in this case, they’re good at it. A few bon mots and surprising stats to whet your appetite:
* Trippi: People watched 14.5 million hours of the official video created by Obama campaign (not including supporters’ videos). Obama would have had to spend $47 million dollars to buy those eyeballs on TV. Plus, YouTube viewers went there on purpose, to watch Obama’s videos–they weren’t interrupted in the middle of their football game.
* Huffington: “The Internet has killed Karl Rove politics.” (You’ll have to watch the video to catch her funniest line. Hint: it has an Alaska connection).
* Newsom: “I have to watch myself sing “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” on YouTube, and it can’t go away. I am desperate to get it to go away….we’re in a reality TV series now, in politics, 24/7.”
[NOTE: Web 2.0 summit videos are available on YouTube.]