ahr Daily ear Hrrl
Blogs provide voters
access to candidates
Can increase interaction, discussion
BY STEPHANIE METZEN
STAFF WRITER
Internet blogging has widely
impacted politics across the coun
try, revolutionizing the field the
way TV did 30 years ago, and the
effects can be seen in N.C. races.
Blogs have become a way for
candidates to get more immedi
ate and diverse
feedback from
voters. They
also enable
grassroots
N.C. Primary
MAY 6
candidates to
broadcast their messages.
Ryan Teague Beckwith, mod
erator for The (Raleigh) News &
Observer’s political blog Under
the Dome, said political blogging
allows readers greater input in the
electoral process.
When Beckwith posted about
a press conference that he was
attending for Republican gubema
torial candidate Bob Orr. a reader
immediately responded with a ques
tion. Beckwith was able to ask Orr
the question, one he said he never
would have thought to ask.
Reporters aren’t the only ones
taking advantage of the opportuni
ty to directly interact with voters.
Hillary Clinton’s campaign start
ed NCAskMe.com, a blog that allows
North Carolinians to submit ques-
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tions. So far more than 11,000 have
been submitted. Some of the entries
have been turned into TV ads.
Demonstrating blogs’ potential
to build trust between candidates
and voters. Democratic candidate
for U.S. Senate Jim Neal confirmed
that he is gay during an online chat
on BlueNC.com.
BlueNC.com, a blog aimed at
progressive Southern Democrats,
features views from both parties.
Front-page blogger Betsy Muse
said some BlueNC bloggers find in
the site a community where they can
express themselves freely despite liv
ing in Republican-dominated areas.
The Republicans within the
BlueNC blogging community
broaden the spectrum of view
points on the issues, she added.
“Some Republicans who hang
around speak from a different per
spective," she said. “1 think there
is tremendous value in that. The
value is that no one viewpoint is
the right viewpoint.”
Candidates use blogs to publicize
their views and policies, not just as
a means of listening to voters.
Justin Thibault, a blogger for
Cabarrus Cheap said his
comm Unity-based blog allows local
candidates to save money by pro
viding a forum for reaching com
munity members.
State 8 National
“We are getting
through that eeho
chamber; ice are
getting unique
content
JUSTIN THIBAULT, BLOGGER
He said blogging allows poli
ticians to relate to people more
personally by publishing in-depth
reports about policies to which con
stituents can respond, as opposed to
an earlier age when politicians just
shook hands and kissed babies.
For politicians with warm per
sonalities, Thibault said, blogging
can be intimidating.
Seasoned politicians, who often
rely on personal interaction, may be
uncomfortable with the shift in voter
attention that comes when blogs pro
vide access to detailed public policy.
Thibault said one limitation is
that people seek out sites featuring
similar interests and political views.
But he said that opportunities
to read about dissimilar views are
available and that people can decide
for themselves what they read.
“We are getting through that
echo chamber; we are getting
unique content," he said.
Contact the State £? National
Editor at stntdeskfa unc.edu.
National and World News
FROM THE
CAMPAIGN TRAIL
McCain speaks to
overlooked voters
SELMA, Ala. (AP) Seeking
support in rural Alabama,
Republican presidential candi
date John McCain said Monday
he knows it will be difficult to
win over black voters who have
supported Democrats for genera
tions.
‘I am aware the African-
American vote has been very
small in favor of the Republican
Party," McCain told reporters.
McCain delivered a speech as
he embarked on a weeklong tour
of places that suffer from poverty
and inattention.
Penn, votes might
differ by region
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -
Older, whiter and more female
than the nation as a whole,
Pennsylvania looks like Hillary
Rodham Clinton country.
Wealthier, better educated and
more African American than the
rest of the state, Pennsylvania’s
thickly settled southeast cor
ner could belong to Barack
Obama.
Pennsylvania's primary
Tuesday could be decisive, or it
could extend a campaign that
has lasted longer than most ever
imagined.
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GCNE RA l ALU MN I ASS O C (AT IO N
TUESDAY. APRIL 22, 2008
Carter, Hamas discuss Israel but are
unable to agree on a plan for peace
JERUSALEM (AP) - Former
President Carter said Monday
that the Islamic group Hamas
was willing to accept the Jewish
state as a “neighbor next door,"
but the militants did not match
their upbeat words with con
crete steps to halt violence.
Hamas, which advocates
Israel's destruction, instead
recycled previous offers, includ
ing a 10-year truce if Israel
takes the unlikely step of with
drawing from the West Bank
and Jerusalem first.
“I did the best I could," Carter
said of his conversation with
Execution dates
reset after ruling
HOUSTON (AP) -
Prosecutors moved quickly
Monday to set new execu
tion dates for three death-row
inmates, hours after the Supreme
Court lifted a reprieve it granted
last fall so it could consider the
constitutionality of lethal injec
tion.
The justices’ last-minute
orders temporarily sparing the
three inmates automatically
expired w hen the justices denied
their appeals Monday.
Several other death row
inmates also lost their appeals
Monday, but they had not been
facing imminent execution.
Hamas supreme leader. Khaled
Mashaal, pressing him to declare
a one-month truce. “They turned
me down, and 1 think they're
wTong."
Over the w eekend. Carter met
twice with Hamas' five-member
politburo. Carter said he won
a written pledge from Hamas
to accept any peace deal with
Israel, as long as it's approved in
a Palestinian referendum.
Carter said Hamas leaders
told him they're also ready to
accept the Jewish state’s right to
“live as a neighbor next door in
peace” one day.
Iraqi leader asks
neighbors for help
BAGHDAD (AP) - Iraq's
prime minister appealed
Monday for support from his
Arab neighbors, urging them
to open embassies and forgive
Iraqi debts as his government
tries to crack down on Shiite
militias in a crucial power
struggle.
But the government plea
came as militia leaders warned
more violence could await.
Sunni Arabs have a strong
stake in keeping Iraq which
is majority Shiite firmly in
the Arab orbit as a buffer against
expanding influence by Iran, the
largest Shiite nation.
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