Netroots Rising: How a Citizen Army of Bloggers and Online Activists Is Changing American Politics | 
 enlarge | Authors: Lowell Feld, Nate Wilcox
Creator: Markos Moulitsas Zuniga
Publisher: Praeger Publishers
Category: Book
List Price: $39.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 343091
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 230
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9.4 x 6.2 x 0.9
ISBN: 0313346607
Dewey Decimal Number: 324.702854678
EAN: 9780313346606
ASIN: 0313346607
Publication Date: June 30, 2008
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Product Description
The 2006 elections will be remembered as the year when the center of power in American politics shifted from traditional "top-down" central broadcasters to new "bottom-up" decentralized activists in the blogosphere and netroots. The authors give firsthand accounts of the burgeoning power of the netroots to determine the outcome of political contests, most notably as when the national balance of power was tipped by Jim Webb's "rag-tag army" of bloggers and netroots activists who provoked and exposed the gaffe that proved fatal to George Allen's senatorial bid. Veteran online campaigners Feld and Wilcox recount and analyze many other political campaigns in which netroots activism was decisive or instructive, including:* U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's downfall. *Tim Kaine's election as Virginia govenor. *Howard Dean's and Wes Clark's presidential campaigns. *Ned Lamont's primary victory over Joe Lieberman. The authors conclude with an assessment of the prospects for Netroots 2.0: Will the netroots hordes "crash the party" or will they work out an uneasy cohabitation with the traditional party power elite? The foreword is written by Markos ("Kos") Moulitsas Zuniga, founding editor of the world's biggest political blog, Daily Kos.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 3 more reviews...
Netroots Rising January 2, 2009
I have just finished reading Lowell Feld's and Nate Wilcox's new book "Netroots Rising" describing the growth in importance of the netroots and the blogosphere in the our democracy. It is a fascinating read. I was especially fascinated at the description of the contribution of the blogging community in causing the downfall of Tom Delay and the description of the Jim Webb phenomenon.
Lowell Feld was one of the leaders of the draft Jim Webb movement. Using his blog Raising Kaine Lowell and his band of merry bloggers built a groundswell of support that convinced Jim Webb to enter the race. This groundswell of support translated into a "ragtag army" of committed volunteers that enabled Webb to win both the primary and the general election despite being outspent over 2 to 1. Lowell was in the middle of all this from the beginning and the account in the book is a fascinating read.
Having worked in the Jim Webb campaign as a volunteer during the primary I can attest to the accuracy of the account. I can also attest to the difficulty that the volunteers had with the paid staff that the book so accurately describes. That difficulty was brought into sharp relief during the Obama campaign which handled volunteers in a uniformly outstanding fashion. I heartly recommend the book to you.
Fascinating Behind-The-Scenes History January 1, 2009
In 2006 I joined those fed up with the bush administration and stumbled into the netroots movement. Other than vote, I had never done anything in politics. However, I discovered Raising Kaine while doing a google search and soon joined Webb's "ragtag army" of volunteers to unseat George Allen. Raising Kaine became the center of my election activities. RK not only had discussions of events and issues, but flyers that you could download and print to distribute. A great endorsement from Webb's company commander in Vietnam was posted. I literally printed out hundreds of copies and distributed them throughout my neighborhood. Netroots Rising is a fascinating behind-the-scenes history of the whole netroots movement.
A 'must' for not only computer libraries, but any collection strong in social issues October 10, 2008
NETROOTS RISING: HOW A CITIZEN ARMY OF BLOGGERS AND ONLINE ACTIVISTS IS CHANGING AMERICAN POLITICS comes from two veteran online campaigners who analyze political campaigns in which netroots activism was decisive or instructive. Their survey offers insider and first-hand accounts of the power of the netroots to determine political outcomes and also offers chapters covering how activists build movements and insiders kill them, and how the passage of time affects political and internet movements. A 'must' for not only computer libraries, but any collection strong in social issues.
 sign me up August 16, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
This book analyzes, through narrative, anecdote and commentary, the convergence of grassroots organizing/activism with the decentralized power of mass communication available through the internet. The stories are great and provide a unique perspective on recent political events. More significant perhaps is the identification of this emerging reality for political campaigns at all levels -- the reality of a newly democratic process, of citizen activism making a difference. The issues involved are reminiscent of the growth in community organizing in recent years through organizations such as the IAF.
By the end of the book, I had a renewed sense of possibility, if not hope, for local political activism. Perhaps citizens can influence candidates, campaigns, and, ultimately, policy. Now that sounds interesting; sign me up.
Revolution? Towards What? August 1, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Political Science has a concept known as "empowerment theory." The idea is that, among other things, giving people an opportunity to participate meaningfully in campaigns is one way of showing respect for their skill, energy, judgment, and intelligence. As formerly frustrated political outsiders begin to perceive such an opportunity for empowerment, many of them will seize that opportunity. As a result of their action, they will feel more efficacious, their lives will seem more meaningful to them, and their belief in democracy will deepen.
This book is a confirmation of empowerment theory. It is a true story of how outsiders to an established campaign process found a new way to become effective participants in the system. As the authors suggest, this may be the beginning of a real revolution.
Who are the netroots? They include men and women, paid website designers and managers, bloggers (paid and unpaid), and especially the readers of these information sources. It is these readers who participate early in campaigns by using the net to seek and to spread information, and to contribute funds to favored candidates, whether in or out of their own voting jurisdictions. By no means monolithic in their opinions, the netroots lean both liberal and libertarian.
For well over 100 years the US has had a political system with a relatively closed campaign and election process run by the rich. Until, that is, 2002 when Howard Dean began his presidential bid.
As the authors show, the Dean campaign listened to its supporters in several ways. It took suggestions made in comments on its blog and in emails to its website. It conducted online voting. It joined with Meetup.com, and encouraged its supports to meet together, unsupervised by the campaign, and brainstorm over ways to support the candidate on their own initiative. This was authentic democratic empowerment.
People who felt frustrated by a perceived lack of empowerment saw an opportunity to exercise some significant power by using the Internet. Some started their own pro-Dean blogs. Daily Kos took up the Dean cause early in 2003. Dozens of Yahoo Groups came together, many self-organized by states.
As the narrative suggests, two of the major moving factors in this period were anger and frustration. The anger was over what they saw as the Bush theft of the presidency in 2000, and even more so at the unprecedented preemptive invasion of Iraq in response to 9/11, which they thought was justified by lies and deception.
The frustration came from believing in the ideal of democracy, while in reality being locked out of the political system, which was dominated by the military/industrial complex, as well as other rich corporations and individuals.
No one proclaimed "let's use the Internet to storm the barricades!" It just happened spontaneously. As the book shows, it happened at the same time in the Dean campaign, and in the Clark campaign. Never mind that both campaigns ultimately failed. Lessons were learned, people gained new and valuable experience, and precedents were set for a truly new politics.
One of the recurring themes in the book is the conflict between, what I call, "the pros and the joes." At one point, for one of the authors, it nearly came to blows! We see numerous examples of old style control freaks trying to shape the message put out by independent-minded bloggers. It just can't be done.
That conflict haunted the "Webb for Senate" campaign in Virginia. Here is the story of a hard fought campaign against a seemingly invulnerable incumbent. Remember the word "macaca"? All the details are in the book.
Other effective uses of the net in politics will be found in a variety of well-told vignettes. These include the story of Tim Kaine's victorious campaign for governor of Virginia. The netroots also played a big part in bringing down "the hammer," former House majority leader Republican Tom Delay. These authors speak from experience, because they were in on the action.
Another theme of the book is that the Internet is not neutral; it has a progressive bias. At first you might think that the Internet is just a tool, to be used as well by conservatives as progressives. But that's not the way it works out in practice. Because of, in part, its uncontrollable blogosphere, this technology is an instrument for changing, not preserving, the present campaign and election process, it is biased in favor of both progressives and libertarians. Libertarian because it liberates individual participants. Progressive because it connects people equally; hence, it elevates the value of all users. All users are equally empowered, and limited only by their own personal skills, drive, and wit. That is why progressives, like the anti-war pro-reform Deaniacs, were the first to put the Internet into effective political use. Progressive minded people are more energized by the net's possibilities than are conservative minded folks.
The writers of Netroots Rising are well aware that Internet technology also tilts progressive because it confronts one of the premises of consumer culture. That is, passivity. Most Americans get their political information from watching TV. Listening to the radio, and reading newspapers and magazines, are a distant second. But Internet technology requires its users to ask questions, and to actively seek answers. As the book suggests, the netroots are the advance guard of the new political activist.
While the authors sense the revolutionary potential of the netroots, they could have sketched in a little more vision in their last chapter. How, for example, can the netroots lead America towards a fuller realization of its potential for a more direct democracy?
Can the new net technology make the direct election of the president possible (that is, without the Electoral College, which contributed to Gore's loss in 2000)? Can the Internet be used to create a virtual republic in each Congressional district, or each state?
What is the full potential of the Internet and its related electronic technology? Is the political potential of this technology maxed out by the speed of communication it allows, or by the efficiency of its computerized record keeping? Is it maxed out by the profitability of its fund-raising efforts? Is it maxed out by its ability to publicize and to popularize a progressive candidate, or to let everyone know about the faults of an incumbent or an opponent of a progressive? Is it maxed out in its role as gadfly to the mainstream media?
One might also ask the authors, "what is the netroots long-term strategy?" Do the netroots want to become merely accepted as equals in the money-dependent presently dominant system, or do they want to find a way to compel that system to break out of its current wealth-serving mold altogether, and use Internet technologies to create a new system, which greatly magnifies the degree of democracy we progressives now find so frustrating? Are the current uses of the net the final realization of its full potential for democratizing our politics?
I would only add that as people become more sophisticated with e-commerce, and other forms of Internet usage, they will become more prepared for increased participation in e-politics. Mistrust and reluctance are currently high about the prospects of online voting; yet, as we have seen, this too was done by Dean. But once the electorate is as comfortable with the prospects of e-politics as they now are with the use of e-commerce and e-banking they will be more receptive for a great leap forward.
Attention teachers. This book is not only excellent as current history, it is a fantastic stimulant for critical thinking. Almost every page makes a claim for a causal relationship between netroots action and some political success, such as fund-raising, drafting a candidate, or winning an election. Your students will have a ball refuting or defending these claims. The book is easy to read, and the authors provide material for both sides of the arguments.
Read this important book and you will see just how a new chapter in American politics has begun to unfold. I highly recommend this book.
William J. Kelleher, Ph.D.
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