Campaign 2008

One news item that is virtually inescapable is the 2008 presidential race. The actual election is still more than a year away, but the media (online and otherwise) just can't stop talking about it. However, online outlets are unique in their ability to give even more information about the race than newspapers or television or radio could ever dream of.

The Washington Post is an ideal site for politics (hey, it's based in D.C, right?). One thing striking this about their Website is the organization they have on all of the 17 major Democrat and Republican candidates. Each candidate has his or her (in the case of Hillary) own profile complete with a campaign tracker for appearances, biography, photos and videos, links to relevant Post articles, a tracker on where the candidate stands on issues, financial summary, and links to relevant Web sites. This site is definitely one of the top to visit for up to date campaign coverage and everything presented is almost wholly unique to online journalism, meaning that most of it could not be accomplished by other forms of journalism so succinctly in one location.


Meanwhile, The New York Times focuses more on the issues and less on the candidates. This doesn't mean that the candidates aren't given adequate coverage. In fact, the Times offers profiles similar to that of thewashingtonpost.com. However, the Website gives more area to articles and issues relevant to campaign 2008. This coverage is unique to online journalism because of the archives that are readily available. Readers can easily access the latest articles on the campaign, including articles titled "Bush Says Clinton Will Win Nomination" and "Education and Schools Are a Focus for Edwards."

Taegan Goddard's Political Wire is more of a blog and differs much from the Post and Times sites. Because it doesn't have the resources of a large newspaper the coverage of campaign 2008 isn't as extensive. However, Political Wire does have its strengths. Each post offers relevant news in addition to the original link. The posts are short and easy to follow, making the site not as overwhelming as that of the Post and Times. This site definitely would not be possible without online journalism. The blog gathers stories from numerous sources and can even categorizes posts by Southpaw (liberal) and Wingers (conservative) commentary. Also, be sure to check out the campaign 2008 "Quote of the Day" along with "Bonus Quote of the Day."


Outside the Beltway in another blog, and while it may not be very fancy it gets the job done. Items are taken from various news outlets and posted together for a complete look at the 2008 race. The blog gives easy access to its archives and recent comments are shown on the main page, giving readers an idea of what they can expect.


One thing is certain with these four completely different sites:

The amount of coverage would not be possible if it wasn't for online journalism. Perhaps because information is so readily available even more people will be motivated to vote in the upcoming election. Only time will tell, but online journalism is doing its part.