As politicians began turning to technology to interact with their constituencies and the rest of the world, two Madison alders and one Madison area state representative have started Web logs, or blogs.
Ald. Zach Brandon, District 7; Ald. Larry Palm, District 15; and Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison join Ald. Brenda Konkel, District 2, in the blogosphere.
Konkel has kept a blog since November 2005. Ald. Austin King, District 8, also has a blog account, but there is only one entry on his site, from January 2005. Brandon, Palm and Pocan all began blogging earlier this month.
'When I found out my state representative Mark Pocan had his own blog,' Palm wrote in his first entry, 'I knew I had to join him!'
Blogs by public officials are common on the Web. As blogs have become more popular, public officials have increasingly turned to them in favor of traditional media to speak directly to the public.
'I think that generally people are happy to have additional information beyond what they would typically get in the newspaper or from TV news,' Konkel said. 'The more information, and the more communication we can do, the better.'
Konkel focuses her blog entries mainly on Madison politics, often calling out her fellow alders on common council issues. Palm and Pocan have been the most active of the newcomers, with Pocan focusing on state politics and Palm discussing broader Madison issues as well as the common council agenda.
Brandon has also made several entries, writing about local issues and broader political topics.
'We spend so much time figuring out how to say it in a sentence or two, where as if you have a blog it gives you the chance to expand upon your ideas,' Brandon said. 'It gives me an opportunity to explain my mindset when making comments.'
But Brandon said traditional media still have a place in the blogging age.
'Some people say they see blogs as a replacement of the media,' Brandon said. 'I see them as something that complements the media.'
Politicians' blogs are certain to get more attention than those of normal citizens. And adjusting to the new form of political communication will take some time.
'I think it can tend to get a little more informal and people aren't used to that from public officials,' Konkel said, 'It just has to be used wisely.'
