TechCrunch has an incredibly compelling post on how the White House can change upon President-elect Barack Obama taking office. When you read the post (it’s long, but I encourage you to read the whole thing) you’ll find it staggering how well the Obama camp leveraged the use of technology throughout the nearly two year campaign. Now that Obama’s won there is an unprecedented opportunity for him to take (dare I say finally) this technology, that may have been the trump card for his electoral win, to Washington.
Never before has a President exhibited the desire, or even the understanding, to use what we take for granted every day. The social aspects of the Internet are limitless so it will be interesting to see if Obama truly turns his “push” approach to communications throughout the campaign to a “pull” when seeking to engage citizens about their thoughts on America. The course charted thus far is encouraging, with Obama saying he will be making a weekly address to the country and posting it on YouTube. Great, for those who have access to the Internet.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m excited about a more technologically-minded White House and what it means for Americans. However, Obama can’t lose site of the fact that only 55% of Americans have access to broadband Internet. Combine this with 10% who use dial-up access (which makes watching a streaming presidential video difficult) and 27% who aren’t Internet users at all and you start to see the challenges of this online initiative. These numbers are based on a report by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.
The new administration, specifically the Chief Technology Officer, must make access to and utilization of the Internet a priority. Not only is this critical for Obama to reach out to the entire class spectrum across America, but also to educate youth in a world that is becoming increasingly more tech savvy. Children missing math and english skills is definately detremental, but kids without computer skills these days will be left behind just as quickly.
Bob Starr, code named Starbuck, is a geek with a passion for film journalism and technology. You can follow Bob on Twitter (
