Chris Bowers:
this campaign could have been a lesson to the establishment media that the progressive netroots are just a subset of the progressive movement, just as the progressive blogosphere is a subset of the progressive netroots. The progressive blogosphere is only about one-third of the progressive netroots, and the progressive netroots are only about one-third of the progressive movement (and the progressive movement has grown to about half the size of the Democratic Party).They could have learned about all of this, and they could have learned that the Internet side of the operation basically just functions as another department in the campaign, just like field, communications and political are departments within campaigns. They could have learned this, and learned how this movement is just itching to become a supplement to the Democratic Party and progressive politics as a whole, rather than against it. They could have learned this, but they would rather blame the downfall of the Democratic Party entirely upon a small handful of national bloggers who gather for drinks at Sullivan's. They could have learned this, but they did not.
To me, it's insulting and rude to the real heroes of the Lamont effort -- win or lose -- who have done ALL the work. I didn't make a single phone call, I didn't walk a single precinct, I didn't lick any envelopes, or staffed an information booth at the local farmer's market.
I wrote about the race and suddenly people want to give this blog (and me) all sorts of credit/blame. Only the laziest of lazy reporters and pundits can lay this at the feet of me or any other blogger.
Riffing off Bower's post, the progressive blogosphere is only a subset of the netroots. The netroots includes MoveOn, DFA, Wikis, Podcasters, ActBlue, and every email listserv and Google/Yahoo Group focused on politics. And bloggers. That we get a disproportionate amount of media coverage is because of the "flavor of the month" thing we've got going. I sure as heck don't believe the hype.
And the netroots is just a tiny subset of the broader progressive movement. Bowers says 1/3rd, I think it's much smaller. That broader movement includes our budding Idea factories like the Center for American Progress, our watchdog organizations, like Media Matters, our growing media institutions, like Air America, and our grassroots, issue, and constituency groups. Some are people-powered, many are not. But that's what a movement looks like.
Lamont has had a huge showing from the newest elements of the people-powered movement -- the bloggers, several of the Air America hosts, SEIU, and DFA. He has even had significant support from traditional progressive organizations like the Connecticut NOW, a handful of labor unions, the Jesse Jackson operation, and a few others.
More important than that, Lamont has the support of a people-powered army. Unlike Lieberman who has had to pay top-dollar for his GOTV operation, Lamont supporters are there on their own violition, eager to work because they believe in the cause. You can't buy that sort of dedication and commitment.
Yet all of that is ignored in this "bloggers flexed muscle" narrative.
So to reiterate -- all those people and organizations above worked their asses off for the Lamont campaign. I sat on my ass and wrote about it. I'm about as relevant to winning the Connecticut primary as the 101st Fighting Keyboardists are in winning the war in Iraq.
Give credit where it's due. The people-powered movement isn't about blogs. In fact, most of its foot-soldiers don't even know what a blog is.
It's about creating a new political order in which ordinary people can take charge of their political destinies and do something to make their country a better place.
They're the heroes in all of this.