The Web on the Candidates

• John Edwards advisor Joe Trippi is in the U.K., telling British politicians that "Internet activism is spelling the end for the age of spin." In an interview with the Guardian, Trippi talked about the always-on nature of online campaigning. "Before TV, what mattered was how your voice sounded. Then with TV it matters what your candidate looks like ... We are now moving to a medium where authenticity is king, from what things look like to what's real ... You have to be 'on' 24 hours a day, seven days a week," Trippi said. He describes the new world of politics in the "peer-to-peer social network world," in which the opinion of peers is worth more than a top-down campaign message. While no candidates in the U.S. - including Edwards -- are completely running this kind of campaign, David Cameron, the leader of the Conservative Party in the U.K., continues his engaged web presence with multiple videos a week and an active community blog.
• The FEC has produced a very cool map showing most campaign contributions to presidential candidates (PAC money and contributions under $200 aren't represented). A bunch of bubbles are overlaid over a map of the U.S., and when you click on the name of a candidate (listed to the left) you'll see the areas that have donated to them; click on the bubbles and you'll get a close-up view of that region; click on them again and you'll see a list of individual donors and the amount they contributed. (hat tip: Hotline)
• The Wireless Communications Association International (NCA) has released an informative listing of every presidential candidates' position on "broadband, telecommunications and technology-related issues." The site describes in detail each candidates' broadband policy, with a focus on their position on net neutrality. An essential guide.

The Candidates on the Web

• Russ Schriefer, who worked for George Bush's media team in '00 and credits himself with having "kind of invented what is now the YouTube ad," is now working with Stuart Stevens for the McCain campaign. In a long piece titled "The selling of McCain 2.0," Howard Kurtz describes the irony of members of Bush's media team -- who helped to dispense with McCain in 2000 -- now working for Bush's former rival. Although Schrieger and Stevens have been successful at producing biting attack ads for TV, they seem untested when it comes to the Internet. It will be interesting to see how their TV mentality will play online.