Are you getting excited about YearlyKos yet? Well, let me ramp it up a bit more. Announcing yet another of the YearlyKos panels. This one is simply called
Hot Topic.
John Aravosis -- AMERICAblog
Duncan Black (Atrios) -- Eschaton
Jane Hamsher -- FireDogLake
Markos Moulitsas (Kos) -- Daily Kos
Moderator: Hunter -- Daily Kos
The Hot Topic panel will be a discussion of some of the top news of the day, as analyzed, poked and prodded by four of the top bloggers in the progressive online community.
While other panels at YearlyKos will generally have a very specific agenda, this one will be wide-ranging discussion of the current issuescape in general -- the rough live equivalent to a blogger open thread. We will be discussing the news, the media that creates that news, current politics, the runup to the November elections, and the issues that we believe will be framing those elections.
We'll be discussing issues driven by particular blogs. We might even wedge in a five-minute Blogger Ethics Panel. Or we might just spend half the alloted time creatively insulting [insert conservative media figure here]; I've got a ripping haiku about Christopher Hitchens that I don't plan on sharing anytime soon.
These are truly some of the biggest names in the blogosphere. As the pseudonymous Atrios, Duncan Black has created in Eschaton one of the most successful progressive blogs online today. Jane Hamsher's blog, FireDogLake, is known for keen analysis and original reporting; John Aravosis' AMERICAblog for reporting and success in online activism that can be matched by few other blogs. And at Daily Kos, Markos has created simply the largest, most trafficked, and most influential progressive blog around.
We're all going to this conference because it is one of the first times that the overall energy of the online progressive movements will be channeled into a single major real-world event, in what many of us hope to be a first stepping stone in the potentially historic movement of online activism into real-world results. We're going because the goals of the panels are to discuss, plan, and frame the continuing progressive agenda, and this will be one of the first times it is done via a combination of bloggers, writers, progressive activists, and some of the top political figures in the country.
But admit it -- this panel's going to be fan service. This will be one of the most popular panels there, because it is the closest thing we can get to a live blog, hosted live by the top bloggers. You'll get to meet them, hear them, and hear their thoughts on what's going to happen next. Screw the agendas, and let's see what happens.
So stop by, and see if we manage to drive Atrios insane with blogger ethics questions that never seem to reach the high planes of the bungles inflicted upon the country by professional media figures. See what Jane thinks is going to happen next in the dogpile of investigations currently in the news, or which right-wing issue sops John thinks will manifest themselves next, and how to fight them. Pick Kos' brain as to what the pickup chances for Democrats in November really are, and how they can be improved -- or damaged. And see if I can keep a handle on this whole mess in a live setting -- including audience questions -- without resorting to language heretofore unseen in any previous panel discussion of American politics.
This will be another fun one. Hot Topic is scheduled for 3:00pm Friday, in Theater 1, immediately following MetaKos. Whether you're from Daily Kos or one of the other represented blogs, are coming to us from another of the hundreds of spectacular blogs in the progressive community, or are just looking to get a feel for the people behind the online movement, we hope to see you there.
Update [2006-6-1 18:59:7 by Hunter]: Have some questions for the panelists or some ideas on what you think we should cover? Put your suggestions in the thread below.