23 January 2009

Challenges Ahead for New White House Web Team

Obama wants to use technology to communicate better with Americans

President Obama likely will use social networking tools to connect with Americans.

By Michelle Austein Brooks
Staff Writer

Washington — At noon January 20, change came to America as Barack Obama became president. Change also came to the White House Web site.

As Obama took the oath of office, WhiteHouse.gov unveiled a new look. “Change Has Come to America” read the Obama White House’s home page. Gone was all the Bush administration material and in its place were new features, including a blog and information about President Obama’s agenda.

Obama’s presidential campaign was viewed as one of the most successful Internet campaigns in history. The Democratic presidential candidate used the Internet to help raise about $750 million and amass a database of 13 million donors.

But technology experts warn that running an Internet campaign and running an Internet government are two very different things.

Building on its successes running the Web sites BarackObama.com (the Obama campaign site) and Change.gov (the Obama transition site), the Obama team is poised to use WhiteHouse.gov and other social networking tools in ways never used before.

Change.gov demonstrated many of the ways in which the Obama team could use technology to reach out to Americans, such as videos of Obama’s speeches and weekly radio addresses. These videos also were posted on YouTube.

The site also included a “citizens’ briefing book,” in which people could discuss government policy, and online forums in which readers could ask questions, some of which were answered by Obama advisers.

OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES

So far, these popular Change.gov features are missing from the White House Web site. The White House blog and other news sections have not been updated as frequently as were their counterparts on Change.gov.

There are legal and institutional challenges to making a government Web site as interactive as a campaign site, experts note.

In its first days, the Obama White House has run into some of these challenges. Some social networking sites are banned from computers in government offices, and federal laws dictate how video, audio and other interactive features can be used. Additionally, most government-based personal computers lack the latest technological tools.

The Obama campaign communicated with its supporters via text messages and a social networking site.

EXPANDED OUTREACH TO CITIZENS

The White House Web site likely will be updated more frequently as the new staff gets up to speed. By using the same social networking tools that were popular on the campaign trail, the Obama administration will implement a new way to reach out to citizens, experts said at a January 9 panel hosted by the New America Foundation.

“Freedom of communication is one of the hallmarks … for a healthy American democracy. With this new administration we have this opportunity to reinvigorate civic engagement,” said Sascha Meinrath, research director of the Wireless Future Program at the New America Foundation.

Online discussions enable the government’s customers, the American people, to have their voice heard, said Craig Newmark, founder of the popular classified-advertising Web site Craigslist.

But some questioned whether everyone’s voice will be heard. Online, “there are people who have ideas which are questionable or people that are just trying to disrupt the conversation, trying to pick fights to get attention,” Newmark said. “Those folks … are trying to pick fights, trying to put disinformation into the conversation, not just to get attention but to create tension.”

Newmark said this problem could be countered by setting up discussion boards in which other users can vote a comment “up” or “down.” The more “up” votes a comment gets, the higher on the page it goes, as comments receiving “downs” move lower. The Obama transition team used a similar feature on Change.gov.

The 13 million who donated to the president’s campaign are likely to be active on the new Obama Web site, but the president will need to make sure that constituents that did not vote for him also have a voice online, said Mindy Finn, director of e-strategy for Republican Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign.

Finn said if the Obama team shows how people’s comments are shaping policy, it might encourage those not active online to engage.

The panel had praise for and concerns about the Obama administration’s online efforts during the transition. The Obama team quickly implemented new ways to use YouTube and discussion forums to reach citizens. When Obama officials received complaints about how these tools were used, they adapted their approaches, the experts said.

With new technology, debates about the appropriate role for a government Web site inevitably will arise. For example, when users posted comments on the Change.gov Web site about a scandal involving Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, they were removed.

“As soon as you start removing comments then all of a sudden you’re now responsible for every single comment that’s up there. You’ve taken this role of mediator or moderator,” Finn said.

“We’re doing something new; we’re experimenting with something that is changing the course of human history. It’s an experiment,” Newmark said.

“There’s going to be a lot of good first moves and there’s going to be a lot of missteps. And you know, I think [Obama’s] gotten off to a really good start.”