Congressional Blogs

I think it is great that congressional offices are starting to utilize blogs to disseminate their messages and experiences. While the number of offices using blogs is not that high, according to the report from the Congressional Management Foundation, there are still members who have taken the plunge and are now blogging.

I can understand why many representatives and Senators are hesitant to start a blog. Blogs are relatively "unfiltered" as the Foundation states, thus it is more difficult to control a precise message, but I think the electoral benefits will far out-weight the possible negatives of having such an unfiltered means of expressing opinions. Ultimately it is up to each individual office to decide if they can dedicate the resources and time to maintaining an office blog. Every office is different; every office has their fundamental opinions on the effectiveness of blogs.

Representative Tom Tancredo seems to believe that allowing unfiltered comments on his blog is a better way of representing himself to his constituents and the people of the United States, while Ted Kennedy seems to think that a periodic post on the DailyKOS - without the ability to comment in real-time - is the better way for his office to represent him. The bottom line is that they are utilizing blogs and new technology to disseminate their ideas and messages. While Representatives and senators do not necessarily have to have such an unfettered blog as Tancredo's to be effective, I fear that if Congress continues to shy away from the medium of blogs and the internet completely, that constituents will eventually view Congress as an institution that is consistently behind the times as far as technology as concerned. Any attempt to utilize new technology and technological methods should be applauded.