Bloggers are now “the man.”
That’s according to Markos Moulitsas, anyways – the founder of the ultimate left-wing political blog, DailyKos.
Just over a week ago (August 13 - 16), nearly 2,000 progressive bloggers, activists, and organizers gathered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for 4 days. And I was there.
It’s an annual gathering that started in 2006 as a rag-tag group of bloggers. At that time, many people still didn’t understand what bloggers did – or why they did it. And politicians certainly weren’t paying much attention to these so-called “bloggers” in 2006 either.
But since the 2008 election, there has been a colossal shift in politicians’ perception of bloggers. Politicians from all over the country came to Netroots Nation this year to court bloggers and win over their support – because now, they understand that political bloggers – the “netroots,” if you will – have built a growing progressive political movement over the past few years.
Bill Clinton, Howard Dean, Valerie Jarrett, Arlen Specter, Joe Sestak, and Darcy Burner are just a handful of the political heavyweights that came and mingled with bloggers and online activists last week. There were also dozens of members of Congress, Hill staffers, and Congressional candidates – all there in an attempt to win the support of political bloggers. All because they recognized one simple fact: they need the support of bloggers and online media in order to achieve their goals. Whether their goals are healthcare reform, other legislation, or just getting elected, politicians and candidates are rapidly realizing that reaching out to constituents through blogs and social media can and will play a tremendous role in shaping the success of their campaigns.
In his keynote address, former President Bill Clinton heralded bloggers for increasing "public discourse" and transparency in politics. Senator Arlen Specter, a lifelong Republican who recently became a Democrat, was there to make his case to liberal bloggers about why they should support him and help him get re-elected. The White House sent one of its top officials -- Valerie Jarrett, senior adviser to President Obama -- to answer questions from bloggers on behalf of the White House. And ask they did -- Clinton, Specter, and Jarrett all received tough questions from bloggers in the audience and handled them well. Bloggers continued to hold politicians accountable for their words and deeds, as they have done online for years.
During the closing keynote of the conference, Moulitsas reminisced about the first Netroots Nation four years ago and remarked, "We were teenagers. Now we're the man." And in 2008, they were able to help elect a Democratic President and a Democratic majority in the House and Senate.
Now, the question is: what will liberal bloggers do next with the movement they have built?