2007 has been celebrated for digital innovation in U.S. politics. The Huffington Post teamed with Slate and Yahoo! for the first online “mash-up” debate. MTV and MySpace launched instant-messaging forums for online viewers to send questions in real time to presidential candidates. And, of course, all the candidates launched spunky web sites that feature videos of the “real” candidate. Our favorite political moment came during the first CNN-YouTube debate when Democratic candidates fielded a video question from a talking snowman that asked about global warming. How did we ever make informed decisions before digital technology enhanced our democracy by empowering citizens, engaging them in meaningful civic discourse, and exposing manipulation by the candidates and the media?
