New Approaches, from Advocacy Associates

I was honored to have a piece in Forum Magazine titled "Build an Online Advocacy Network for Advocacy Success." I outlined some options for advocate network leaders to consider when approaching the brave new world of web 2.0. I highlighted some challenges (and opportunities) inherent to this particular environment.

An editorial in yesterday's Washington Post offers more insights. In her piece "Citizenship 2.0, author Danielle Allen outlines two types of policy / political web 2.0 approaches: one focused on a top down hierarchical approach and one focused on a more interactive, community based philosophy. She looks at these two approaches from the perspective of the political parties, noting that in the past, the right has been far more likely to adopt the later approach than the left.

But the times, they are a changing. Recently the left has become far more cognizant of and familiar with the more interactive, less hierarchical approaches as evidenced by, in part, the Obama campaign's desire to build a conversation with the American people through the internet. Whether this will be successful or not remains to be seen, but Allen argues that, if it is, we'll see a richer and more engaging citizenship experience for all.