Obama to do weekly YouTube public addresses

[Ender]

link

Today, President-elect Obama will record the weekly Democratic address not just on radio but also on video -- a first. The address, typically four minutes long, will be turned into a YouTube video and posted on Obama's transition site, Change.gov, once the radio address is made public on Saturday morning.

The address will be taped at the transition office in Chicago today.

"This is just one of many ways that he will communicate directly with the American people and make the White House and the political process more transparent," spokeswoman Jen Psaki told us last night.

In addition to regularly videotaping the radio address, officials at the transition office say the Obama White House will also conduct online Q&As and video interviews. The goal, officials say, is to put a face on government. In the following weeks, for example, senior members of the transition team, various policy experts and choices for the Cabinet, among others, will record videos for Change.gov.

Yesterday, transition co-chairman Valerie Jarrett recorded a two-minute video that summarized the goings-on in the past week. "President-elect Obama adopted the most sweeping and strict ethics rules that have ever been in place in the course of a transition," said a bespectacled Jarrett, looking directly at the camera in a video that's yet to be posted.

President Bush, too, has updated WhiteHouse.gov, which offers RSS feeds, podcasts and videos of press briefings. The site's Ask the White House page has featured regular online chats dating back to 2003, and President Bush hosted one in January after a Middle Eastern trip.

But online political observers say President-elect Obama's innovative, online-fueled campaign will likely evolve into a new level of online communication between the public and the White House--the Internet-era version of President Franklin Roosevelt's famous "fireside chats" between 1933 and 1944,

"The Obama team has written the playbook on how to use YouTube for political campaigns. Not only have they achieved impressive mass -- uploading over 1800 videos that have been viewed over 110 million times total -- but they've also used video to cultivate a sense of community amongst supporters," said Steve Grove, head of news and politics at YouTube. "Obama told us in a YouTube interview last year that he plans to have 'fireside chats' on video, and we expect his administration will launch a White House YouTube channel very soon after taking office."

Added Ellen Miller of the Sunlight Foundation, a D.C.-based nonprofit that advocates for government transparency: "We're living, after all, in the Internet era. This is an individualized version of the 'fireside chats.' It's not delivered between 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. but whenever anyone wants to see it. I don't know if it necessarily creates transparency -- it's still a controlled, one-way message. But it creates the aura of a much more accessible presidency."

So what's next from the Obama White House?

A behind-the-scenes online video exclusive of the State of the Union Address? A text message reminding us to turn in our taxes? Who knows...

BRB, registering YouTube account KarlRove to troll the crap out of the comments section and make Fake YouTube response videos.

Seriously though, this is going to be an incredibly transparent administration, and the more that comes out the more I am liking it. Assuming that these ideas are put into practice well, I hope that they become presidential traditions and stick around for a long time.

[KlavoHunter]

I was enthusiastic about voting for Obama, but even I didn't even dream it would be anything like this.

This is truly quite amazing to me. Obama really is changing the face of the presidency forever - and I like it.

[Sarevok]

Will there be comments enabled ?

Because although Youtube is in theory a great communications medium the comments there leaves one doubting human sentience. It's a shame that this initiative will miss it's potential because of how many people behave on youtube and similar sites.

[Duckie]

I predicted this as soon as he announced that he would be revitalizing the fireside chats of Roosevelt, but I didn't see it being officially distributed through Youtube.

I'm not sure if Obama thinks he's the second coming of FDR or if he in actuality is the second coming of FDR.

Also, Obama's youtube account never has comments enabled from what I understand, to avoid racism and trolling.

[Ender]

Will there be comments enabled ?

I doubt it, owing to the sheer volume of replies he can expect to get.

[Erik von Nein]

Hmm, I might actually watch these, then. I've never been one for the radio addresses during Bush's presidency, but these might be worth it. I suppose we'll see with the first few videos.

[Coyote]

I don't know... I hate to say it, but seeing what passes for "insightful commentary" on YouTube I doubt they'd even bother to read feedback if they did enable it-- and I wouldn't blame them.

The Obama staff will save themselves a lot of headache by just directing people to the forums on the government website. Even places like Politico and the like are still crammed with "Obama is t3h Kommie Moooo$lim" type diarrhea. Although the right wing's manic froth as a result of this election is telling me that the right choices have been made.

Obama will finally tap into the mainstream of American thought-- for good or ill, we shall see. As an added bonus, being on YouTube, this will be available to the entire world as well. If it greases the wheels of diplomacy in some small way, that will be interesting to see. The annual State of the Union address will really just be a broad summary of events and ideas. The real communication will be done in this manner.

Cool!

[Admiral Valdemar]

Pfft, Bush was on the telly practically every day when the economy was imploding the other month.

[Morilore]

Pfft, Bush was on the telly practically every day when the economy was imploding the other month.

That's a good point, which is actually brought up in the article:

Added Ellen Miller of the Sunlight Foundation, a D.C.-based nonprofit that advocates for government transparency: "We're living, after all, in the Internet era. This is an individualized version of the 'fireside chats.' It's not delivered between 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. but whenever anyone wants to see it. I don't know if it necessarily creates transparency -- it's still a controlled, one-way message. But it creates the aura of a much more accessible presidency."

What would really make me cream my pants is if I heard that Obama was abolishing the office of White House press secretary and taking candid questions directly from reporters on a regular basis. What this is is just PR - refining the "message" to be more accessible.

[Admiral Valdemar]

Primer Minister's Questions, but for POTUS. Bring that in, and I'll sit up and take note. If the opposition can't grill the leader, and vice versa, then we're stuck with mudslinging in the press.

[CaptainChewbacca]

Pfft, Bush was on the telly practically every day when the economy was imploding the other month.

That's a good point, which is actually brought up in the article:

Added Ellen Miller of the Sunlight Foundation, a D.C.-based nonprofit that advocates for government transparency: "We're living, after all, in the Internet era. This is an individualized version of the 'fireside chats.' It's not delivered between 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. but whenever anyone wants to see it. I don't know if it necessarily creates transparency -- it's still a controlled, one-way message. But it creates the aura of a much more accessible presidency."

What would really make me cream my pants is if I heard that Obama was abolishing the office of White House press secretary and taking candid questions directly from reporters on a regular basis. What this is is just PR - refining the "message" to be more accessible.

He may take candid questions from time to time, but there's so much more that the press secretary does than just answer questions that they really can't get rid of him.

[Ender]

Primer Minister's Questions, but for POTUS. Bring that in, and I'll sit up and take note. If the opposition can't grill the leader, and vice versa, then we're stuck with mudslinging in the press.

We did. George Washington did it one time, got pissed, and never did it again, killing the tradition then and there.

[CaptainChewbacca]

Primer Minister's Questions, but for POTUS. Bring that in, and I'll sit up and take note. If the opposition can't grill the leader, and vice versa, then we're stuck with mudslinging in the press.

We did. George Washington did it one time, got pissed, and never did it again, killing the tradition then and there.

I'm not doubting you, but do you have a source/link for that? It sounds awesome.

[Admiral Valdemar]

I'd have thought if anyone killed the concept, it'd be Andrew Jackson. With a gun.

[Kodiak]

here's his first broadcast

Talking about the economic crisis, it sounds pretty good. I'm looking forward to more of these.

Today, the leaders of the G-20 countries -- a group that includes the world's largest economies -- are gathering in Washington to seek solutions to the ongoing turmoil in our financial markets. I'm glad President Bush has initiated this process -- because our global economic crisis requires a coordinated global response.

And yet, as we act in concert with other nations, we must also act immediately here at home to address America's own economic crisis. This week, amid continued volatility in our markets, we learned that unemployment insurance claims rose to their highest levels since September 11, 2001. We've lost jobs for ten straight months -- nearly 1.2 million jobs this year, many of them in our struggling auto industry. And millions of our fellow citizens lie awake each night wondering how they're going to pay their bills, stay in their homes, and save for retirement.

Make no mistake: this is the greatest economic challenge of our time. And while the road ahead will be long, and the work will be hard, I know that we can steer ourselves out of this crisis -- because here in America we always rise to the moment, no matter how hard. And I am more hopeful than ever before that America will rise once again.

But we must act right now. Next week, Congress will meet to address the spreading impact of the economic crisis. I urge them to pass at least a down-payment on a rescue plan that will create jobs, relieve the squeeze on families, and help get the economy growing again. In particular, we cannot afford to delay providing help for the more than one million Americans who will have exhausted their unemployment insurance by the end of this year. If Congress does not pass an immediate plan that gives the economy the boost it needs, I will make it my first order of business as President.

Even as we dig ourselves out of this recession, we must also recognize that out of this economic crisis comes an opportunity to create new jobs, strengthen our middle class, and keep our economy competitive in the 21st century.

That starts with the kinds of long-term investments that we've neglected for too long. That means putting two million Americans to work rebuilding our crumbling roads, bridges, and schools. It means investing $150 billion to build an American green energy economy that will create five million new jobs, while freeing our nation from the tyranny of foreign oil, and saving our planet for our children. It means making health care affordable for anyone who has it, accessible for anyone who wants it, and reducing costs for small businesses. And it also means giving every child the world-class education they need to compete with any worker, anywhere in the world.

Doing all this will require not just new policies, but a new spirit of service and sacrifice, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. If this financial crisis has taught us anything, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers -- in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people. And that is how we will meet the challenges of our time -- together. Thank you.

[Ryan Thunder]

Wow. I wish my PM would do that.

Then again, I wish my PM would do quite a few things, but he doesn't, and we're probably better off for it.

Obama will finally tap into the mainstream of American thought-- [...]

You know, I really hate it when you say stuff like that. Yes, Bush was an idiot, and he wrecked just about everything he touched, but you're going to have to come to terms with the fact that he was democratically elected to office not once, but twice. So, obviously, the mainstream of American thought wasn't always what it is now.

Same to those who made comments in the election thread to the effect of, and I paraphrase, "I finally feel like [the USA is] a democracy again." It is a democracy, and it was always a democracy. Whether you like the guy that your democracy elected to office or not doesn't change that.

[KrauserKrauser]

Funny, I could have sworn that we were a Republic and were never at any time a Democracy.

These could be a good thing and very damaging if he stops due to bad performance, another thing to harp on if he gives it up. I like the idea and he can give a great speech.

He is continually trying to channel Kennedy and that is a mixed blessing. Kennedy was great at getting people motivated but had some really crappy plans that he put in motion. Being a good orator in know way assures intelligent policies coming from the new President elect.

[ray245]

Funny, I could have sworn that we were a Republic and were never at any time a Democracy.

These could be a good thing and very damaging if he stops due to bad performance, another thing to harp on if he gives it up. I like the idea and he can give a great speech.

He is continually trying to channel Kennedy and that is a mixed blessing. Kennedy was great at getting people motivated but had some really crappy plans that he put in motion. Being a good orator in know way assures intelligent policies coming from the new President elect.

Well, we will have to hope don't we?

[KrauserKrauser]

Yes hope for changing hope that changes the hope to hope for change in the hope of change to change the hoping change of changing hope.

[JME2]

Yes hope for changing hope that changes the hope to hope for change in the hope of change to change the hoping change of changing hope.

Or just join the Blue Lantern Corps.

Anyway, seriously, this should prove most interesting (and will no doubt excite my pro-Obama sister even more).

[Kodiak]

I think it would be good to have a weekly "Obama Fireside" thread here in N&P much like we have weekly threads of various TV shows. This would give a place to comment topically without overloading a thread.