What Techies Need to Know About Barack Obama
Have you ever expected to see a presidential candidate’s speech sandwiched by racy video clips? A campaign rally brought to you by Facebook? From Web sites to Blogs to announcements to fundraising, Barack Obama is trying to utilize every aspect of the online community to boost his campaign.
Techies have probably noticed the freshman Senator from Illinois all over the Internet but where does he stand on issues such as technology education, efficient healthcare and clean energy? Obama has a bold plan to expand broadband access to everyone but his stance on net neutrality could come into conflict with that effort. Is Obama “poised to become the Technology President” like the group Obama for Technology claims? Can he move America further into the “digital age” or will his ideas fall flat? Only time will tell but here are a few things you need to know about where he stands.
He has a major online presence.
Senator Obama has a blog, a Flickr account and a strong Facebook following. He delivers podcasts and viral videos. Not to mention his own social networking site, my.barackobama.com.
Viral Videos
Obama announced his exploratory committee via an online video clip. His presidential campaign announcement is now ranked #2 on Brightcove.com’s Top 10 Buzz videos, between a porn clip and cover model’s video. He is currently utilizing the power of Brightcove by creating his own channel with a syndication function. This allows barackobama.com to host BarackTV, while at the same time providing clips that bloggers and websites can publish on their pages.
Senator Obama spoke to a group of students at George Mason University who organized a “Yes We Can” rally for Obama. The organizers behind the event belong to a group on Facebook called Students for Barack Obama. According to CBSNews.com, the event “also drew supporters from other area colleges, as well as young voters from Michigan, Florida and Obama’s hometown, Chicago — all thanks to Facebook.”
my.barackobama.com
Obama’s website includes a social networking function. It’s much like myspace, but you’re not going to find any hot pink backgrounds or fairy cursors there. It’s all about Obama. Once registered, users can write their own blogs, raise money, locate events and join groups. The blogs are plentiful, ranging from advice for Obama, to why others should support him, to completely unrelated inanity. The site also contains various groups of interest such as Geeks for Obama and Obama for Technology.
Despite the massive online interest in Obama, there is still room for skepticism. Zack Exley of the Personal Democracy Forum is not convinced that Obama’s internet efforts are genuine. He’s concerned that Obama’s campaign has “delegated ‘the Internet thing’ to staffers…outside of the inner circle”. However, it is clear that in Obama’s campaign, no matter who is pulling the strings, they are taking “the Internet thing” seriously and using it to the candidate’s advantage.
He wants America to “compete in the digital age.”
In a speech announcing his candidacy for president, Obama expressed hope that ours will “be the generation that reshapes our economy to compete in the digital age.” What exactly does this entail?
Bringing education into the 21st century
Obama has noted that “those on the other side of the globe are increasingly being educated earlier, longer, and with special emphasis on the math and science skills required for the industries of tomorrow.” That means that today’s kids now have to compete with the rest of the world or become obsolete. In response to this phenomenon, Obama wants to improve computer education. Moreover, he wants children to be able to learn how to design and build technology like PlayStations and websites, not just play on them.
Broadband Everywhere
Senator Obama, while speaking at TechNet, pointed out that the United States now ranks 10th in the world for providing people with access to broadband. In his campaign announcement, he made it clear that he intends to do something about that by “lay[ing] down broadband lines through the heart of inner cities and rural towns all across America.” When Chicago launched a municipal wi-fi network project, Obama sent Mayor Daley of Chicago a letter to commend it. He also offered Mayor Daley assistance in the form of Public Internet Channel, a project Obama works on that strives to make the Internet more accessible to everyone.
Of course, with broadband comes the option for VoIP. Although Obama has not made note of it, his plan to expand broadband opens up the possibility for more VoIP users. Keep an eye on him in the coming months to see if he makes light of this connection.
Obama has high hopes for bringing America into the “digital age.” It will be interesting to see how he plans to fund these projects. As the campaign continues, expect to see Obama expand on his views of technology education and, especially, broadband.
He supports net neutrality.
Obama has been integral in efforts to preserve net neutrality. He and other legislators have met with Google co-founder and President Sergey Brin to discuss the issue.
What is net neutrality?
According to SavetheInternet.com, there are telephone and cable companies that intend to manipulate the way data is moved by “deciding which web sites go fast or slow and which won’t load at all.” Net neutrality ensures that these companies won’t get their way.
Freedom to Podcast
Obama delivered a podcast (yes, a podcast) on net neutrality, noting that “it is because the internet is a neutral platform that I can put out this podcast and transmit it over the Internet without having to go through any corporate media middleman. I can say what I want without censorship or without having to pay a special charge.”
Congress Steps In
The issue of net neutrality has made it to Congress. Obama is a co-sponsor of the Internet Freedom Preservation Act, which works to protect equality for all content and applications. It also protects consumers from being forced to buy “bundled” services with their broadband connection similar to cable or VoIP.
Does this conflict with his broadband plan?
A group called Hands Off the Internet is overjoyed that Obama hopes to spread broadband access. But at the same time, they are not so excited about his policy on net neutrality. They note that net neutrality could block the “incentives for cable and telephone companies” that are needed to make the investment in spreading broadband. It remains to be seen if Obama can pull off both projects.
Net neutrality will, without a doubt, be an ongoing debate. Keep an eye on Senator Obama’s involvement with net neutrality legislation and watch what kind of impact it may have on his plans to extend broadband.
He wants to promote technology for healthcare.
Healthcare needs a tech facelift, plain and simple. Obama would like to engineer that. His vision could translate into a more advanced system and lots of jobs for techies.
Advances in Medical Information Technology
On his website, Obama notes that “a single transaction at a hospital still costs up to $25–not one dime of which goes toward improving care.”
Obama has committed to working on the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program Efficiency Act, which aims to provide purchasing power to be used on developing technology in healthcare administration.
If Comcast can tell that you have an affinity for CuteOverload.com’s hamsters eating bits of corn, shouldn’t your new doctor have file information about your 20 year old tonsillectomy just as easily? It sounds like Obama is poised to provide the support necessary to get your hamster addiction and tonsils on the same level, cheaper.
He wants to turn our energy problems into opportunities for innovation.
Just about everyone these days is concerned about energy issues. If you’re not, well, what rock do you live under and where can we all get a car with your gas mileage? For everybody interested in energy conservation and a transition to a more efficient, technology-based economy, Obama has something for you.
Forcing innovation by using caps on carbon emissions
Obama has come up with a plan to reduce emissions. First, the cap for emissions will be lowered. If a business can’t operate under that cap, they have two options—(1) to purchase credits from other companies or (2) to purchase a permit, the funds of which will go toward investments in clean energy technology. Fred Krupp, President of Environmental Defense, notes that this plan has the potential to “make winners out of innovators.” Winners being the ones laughing all the way to the bank, of course.
Investment in clean coal technology
Power companies are gearing up to build dozens of new plants that will use coal. The problem is, if they don’t use the right technology, they stand to create 60 billion tons of pollution. Makes your lungs twinge, doesn’t it? To combat this black and dusty future, Obama plans to implement “standards and incentives [to] ensure that these plants use available technology” that’s better for all of us.
Fuel-efficient cars as the future of auto industry
Obama believes that fuel-efficient cars are the future of the U.S. auto industry and he has a plan to support their growth. “Healthcare for Hybrids” offers auto makers healthcare savings in exchange for investment in fuel-efficient cars. This will help to give auto makers the tools they need to support their employees while working towards a future of fuel efficiency.
Flex fuel support
Senator Obama has introduced the American Fuels Act, which provides loans and capital to the biofuel entrepreneurs who have the best plans. Also part of this act is adding flex-fuel gas tanks to cars, which cost manufacturers an extra $100 per car. Obama plans to provide a $100 tax credit to cover the cost. And just to show us he’s serious, he wants to make sure that all new cars the government buys will be flex-fuel vehicles.
All of these energy plans and programs add up to a great opportunity for engineers and techies alike to create innovative plants and products. Even if you have no aspirations of the inventive kind, don’t feel left out. You’ll still get clean(ish) air and a smaller gas bill.
Obama has brought some tech-savvy ideas to his campaign. He’s used the power of the internet to his advantage and hopes to bring America into the digital age of education, healthcare and energy. Chris Lehane, a Democratic political consultant, wonders if Obama will be “the Google of the presidential campaign and redefine the model, or…ultimately sink.” It will be fun to keep an eye on him and see which way he goes.
Original post by Staff
