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Democrats Embrace Blogs For Convention

When Democrats gather in Denver in late August next year for their presidential nominating convention, dozens of bloggers will be there with credentials in hand.

Democrats were the first to credential bloggers for a presidential convention back in 2004 when they met in Boston. At a media walk-through of the new convention site yesterday, Democratic officials vowed to make even more space for bloggers next year.

"They are extending the 50-state strategy to include us, the bloggers, at the convention," Joan McCarter wrote at Daily Kos. "They are reserving 56 credentials for state and local bloggers, hoping that bloggers from all across the country (and territories) will come to Denver and cover the convention from their perspective."

State bloggers who want credentials must have been online six months and must have written at least 120 blog entries. They also must detail the depth of their audiences to the party, including their "authority" ranking via the Technorati blog search site. One credential could be shared by multiple bloggers for the same site. Credentials also will be reserved for national bloggers, niche bloggers who sometimes write about politics and video bloggers.

The bloggers at the walk-through engaged in a bit of advance lobbying, further evidence of the political power they have amassed since 2004, when they were welcomed to the convention almost as an afterthought. Here is McCarter's account of what transpired.

In the special breakout session for bloggers, we stressed that the state and local bloggers particularly need to have floor access to be able to spend time with their states' delegations, and that all bloggers need to be credentialed for not only the convention floor but for the meetings that take place around the convention, where some of the real news will be happening.

Additionally, we pointed out how critical it is that traditional media who happen to also have blogs should not be considered part of the blogger pool when it comes to credentialing. Credentials are a very limited resource, and if the DNC really wants to have alternative voices reporting on the convention ... then they should reserve all of the blogging credentials for those who can't get them as standard press.

Bloggers can start submitting applications Dec. 10, and they will be accepted through April 15. More details are available from the Democratic National Convention Committee, which also has a blog. Jason Rosenberg, a co-founder of the video blog PoliticsTV, has been hired full time to oversee new media.

Attempts to contact the convention committee by telephone and e-mail to see if Republican bloggers will be able to get credentials have been unsuccessful so far.

Jeralyn Merritt, a law professor in Colorado who blogs at TalkLeft, was at the walk-through and shared some valuable logistical information about blogging:

As for Internet access: Wi-Fi is not great at these events because of the amount of "RFs" caused by the Secret Service being in attendance. Not only is there interference but for security reasons, sometimes they shut it down entirely when a major person is arriving or speaking.

They will hard-wire most of the arena, but they recommend you bring a mobile phone with blogging capacity. They are in the process of making offers to AT&T and Verizon and perhaps others to come in and strengthen the signals. If you have "mission critical" stuff to get up, like video or photos, your best bet is either wired or mobile blogging.

Also at the convention, Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas Zuniga is joining forces with the liberal group ProgressNow to "host our friends in the progressive community in style" near the convention site.

As usual, Republicans are behind the curve on embracing the blogosphere.

Matt Burns, the spokesman for the GOP convention that will be held in Minneapolis/St. Paul next September, said Republicans "anticipate having a considerable blogger presence" but added that no decisions have been made about space or the number of credentials. He also could not say whether Democratic bloggers would be eligible for credentials.

Those kinds of decisions are "several months away," Burns said. But he added that the GOP has "a great appreciation for bloggers and the important role they play in providing real-time information and shaping public opinion," and that the convention is even pursuing "an aggressive plan that utilizes emerging technologies to involve bloggers who are unable to travel to Minneapolis/Saint Paul."

Posted by Danny | 11:32 AM

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