Tue, 30 September 2008  Back with a vengance, its the Jersey Toddshow. I was all fired up tonight about Podcamp Philly, and the Podcasting community. The good, bad, and ugly is all here. (Well, I'm not sure about the ugly....)Featuring Listen to the show here Buy these albums 
You know that I believe in the podcast community. Sure,
it doesn't exist in any kind of formal sense, and maybe it no longer
exists in the "us versus them" mentality that it did 3-years ago. Maybe
it doesn't exist in a "Bum Rush the Charts" kind of way. Maybe it
only exists in between your earbuds. But at the end of the day, if you
make a podcast, listen to a podcast, or know the word podcast, you are
part of the community.
I first learned of Barack Obama like the majority of Americans
at the 2004 Democratic Convention. I subsequently read his books, and,
have been an adament supporter of him since - but you know how I really
got to know Barack Obama - he's a podcaster. That's right, since 2006,
right there at the dawn of Podcasting - Barack Obama has put out a
podcast. Sometimes it was unique content, sometimes it was replaying
town hall meetings or speeches - but "The Barack Obama Show" has been
right there with you and me and this whole new media revolution. So,
I'm going to talk about Barack Obama tonight not as a politician, not
as a candidate for president, but as a fellow podcaster.
On the last episode, I made a bit of a joke that was perhaps not the most respectful thing that I had ever done. I reiterated the "Little Known Facts" meme about Sarah Palin, and for that I apologize. I sincerely apologize. I do this because at the end of the day, she is someone that deserves my respect. She is in fact the Governor of the 47th most populated State in the Country - Alaska. This is a State with 3 electorial votes, and one Congressman. A State who trails the thriving metropolis of South Dakota by over a 100,000 people. Sara Palin, who we now know, knows as much about the Bush Doctrine as she does about particle physics. Because, as a podcaster, I want you not to treat Sarah Palin as a joke. As a podcaster I want you to listen to every word out of John McCain's mouth. As a podcast listener, and part of various online communities, I want you to take Sarah Palin, the woman who potentially is another melanoma away from the Presidency, very, very seriously for one simple reason. Sarah Palin and John McCain, and the Republican Party, don't like the internet. We know that John McCain tried to stop internet gambling while
having a basketball pool on his website where you could win McCain
shwag.
We know that John McCain doesn't have the first idea about net
neutrality, or what it means to you and like Senator Stevens refers to
the net as a series of pipes.
We know that John McCain, doesn't like bloggers. He once
sponsored a bill called the "Stop the Online Exploitation of Our
Children Act" which would fine blogs up to 300 grand for offensive
statements, photos and videos posted to your site by a visitor.
Hmm...Barack Obama wanted to teach age appropriate curriculum to make
kids aware of pedophiles and what to do, and John McCain wanted to stop
pedophilia by fining web sites. Sheesh.
We know that John McCain was one of the most vocal opponents
to E-rate, which would provide discount Internet access to schools and
libraries because of the potential lost revenue to the
telecommunications industry.
But all of this, I look at as politics as usual. I'm not
really sure John McCain can set the VCR. I'm sure John McCain thinks
that Twitter is something pornographic, and Facebook is a movie with
John Travolta and Nicolas Cage. Wow, that reference was a foul ball.
Jeez, I've been hitting references lately like the Mets have been
hitting fastballs. Its the Jersey Todd September swoon!
What really upset me was the GOP convention. I really had a
problem with this, as a podcaster and a member of Internet communities
- and maybe I'm taking it all a little personal - but then again, all
politics are local. On two successive nights, "America's Mayor" Rudy
Giuliani and "Barracuda" Sarah Palin both took the opportunity to make
fun of Barack Obama's community organizer experience.
They tried to make the term "community organizer" sound like a
dirty word. They wanted to make you think that when someone graduates
law school and has an opportunity to make a lot of money that they
should immediately do so. The downright snarkiness from them was
unbearable. I'm not saying that a community organizer has as much
executive experience as a mayor of a big town like New York City, or a
small town like Wasilla. In fact, its the community organizers in these
cities and towns that generally are a pain in the ass for Mayor's to
deal with because they help give a voice to those who don't have a
voice. No wonder they don't like community organizers. But they made it
out to sound like Barack was following Jerry Garcia for two years. I
believe since that time, even John McCain has softened his stance on
this issue like a 72-year old with an expired prescription for Viagra.
Two weekends ago, I attended Podcamp Philly. I didn't want to
go. In fact, I tried my hardest to come up with a justification not to
go. For the longest time, I have been of the community but not part of
the community. The morning of Podcamp was dark, and rainy, and the kids
were acting up, and my wife had to push me out the door. I had
committed to speak on a panel regarding music and well, sometimes you
just have to do it.
But here's the thing that blew me away, I actually had a
pretty decent time. I saw a lot of people that I only knew from online
communities. I made some amazing connections. I actually learned a
thing or two.
But here's the thing that I took away from it - as someone
that uses the Internet - the minute that you make your presence known
on the net - you automatically start becoming a "community organizer".
From your friends on myspace or facebook, to followers on facebook, to
connections on linked in, you are making a conscious effort to bring
people that you know into your little community - and then you do
something with your little community - you either try to entertain them
with your "lol" worthy humor or sharing your family pictures, or even,
dare I say it - telling them what music to buy or books to check out.
OK, now here's the clincher, as Podcasters we are using this community
organizer way in exactly the same way that Saul Alinsky, or Cesar
Chavez, Hillary Clinton, or Barack Obama would have wanted - we create
bottom up groups to challenge the status quo - whether its of the music
industry the video industry or whatever, and if you think that it
doesn't scare people like John McCain or Sarah Palin then I've got a
bridge to sell you in Alaska. Lets face it, Podcasters are Community
Organizers Version 2.0.
Podcasting, Blogging, Social Media, midget porn sites, have
the ability to bring people together with similar interests. Right now,
this talk may only hit one set of ears at a time, but you all are
sharing in that community experience. Shame on the Republican Party for
trying to make fun of organized communities. The right to assemble is
Constitutionally guaranteed whether online or in the streets of
Chicago, and I can stand only so much but i will not sit quietly and
allow the Republican Party to bad mouth the United States Constitution.
My name is Jersey Todd, and I am a community organizer. Got a problem with it? Category: podcasts -- posted at: 8:49 PM Comments[0] |
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