ForLibertyFight
10-07-2007, 11:39 PM
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1668444,00.html
Campaign Insider. How Ron Paul's eCampaign guru made him a Web sensation
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Ron Paul for President 2.0?
Ron Paul's campaign got the hat cam for free. broadcasting live video from the bill of an otherwise unassuming trucker's cap, it streams rallies, postdebate spin and straw polls from the top of whoever's head it happens to be resting on. That person is often Justine Lam, the Texas Republican's slim, soft-spoken "eCampaign" director. "It's hugely popular," says Lam, 28. "You just have to be careful not to nod your head. It makes the people who are watching dizzy."
Equally dizzying is the speed with which Lam, a campaign neophyte, has quietly spearheaded the Ron Paul Internet juggernaut. The campaign raised $5 million in the third quarter of 2007 (five times as much as Mike Huckabee took in), largely from online donations. Paul's YouTube channel has more than 29,000 subscribers, and he often beats out top-tier candidates in online and text-message polls. Lack of resources forced Lam, a Bay Area native, to turn to existing (and free) social-networking sites to do online outreach--in other words, MySpace, not McCainSpace.
This anything-goes approach has made Ron Paul 2008 the electoral equivalent of open-source software. It's a perfect match for the candidate's libertarian fans. Lam has outsourced the tools of online campaigning, giving supporters access to raw video feeds and schedules that are typically controlled by advisers and consultants. It's a hands-on approach that Lam can relate to. "I really like playing with these new tools," she admits. "I guess I'm kinda geeky."
Campaign Insider. How Ron Paul's eCampaign guru made him a Web sensation
Related Articles
Ron Paul for President 2.0?
Ron Paul's campaign got the hat cam for free. broadcasting live video from the bill of an otherwise unassuming trucker's cap, it streams rallies, postdebate spin and straw polls from the top of whoever's head it happens to be resting on. That person is often Justine Lam, the Texas Republican's slim, soft-spoken "eCampaign" director. "It's hugely popular," says Lam, 28. "You just have to be careful not to nod your head. It makes the people who are watching dizzy."
Equally dizzying is the speed with which Lam, a campaign neophyte, has quietly spearheaded the Ron Paul Internet juggernaut. The campaign raised $5 million in the third quarter of 2007 (five times as much as Mike Huckabee took in), largely from online donations. Paul's YouTube channel has more than 29,000 subscribers, and he often beats out top-tier candidates in online and text-message polls. Lack of resources forced Lam, a Bay Area native, to turn to existing (and free) social-networking sites to do online outreach--in other words, MySpace, not McCainSpace.
This anything-goes approach has made Ron Paul 2008 the electoral equivalent of open-source software. It's a perfect match for the candidate's libertarian fans. Lam has outsourced the tools of online campaigning, giving supporters access to raw video feeds and schedules that are typically controlled by advisers and consultants. It's a hands-on approach that Lam can relate to. "I really like playing with these new tools," she admits. "I guess I'm kinda geeky."