anthrotechnologist

In the article e-Hail To the Chief, the Washington Post's style writer Jose Antonio Vargas explores how Barack Obama's massive election Internet community may be transitioned into a new kind of great society.

This community, which includes 13 million e-mail addresses representing individuals and households who donated to Obama's election campaign in record numbers, could be an unprecedentedly powerful force in transforming society and culture if the communications conduit is harnessed to the full potential.

But the answer of what exactly is that potential lies on the edge of anthrotechnology.

Certainly, Obama is broadcasting his message to the faithful and building loyalty and devotion among the driven interest core inside his database. The campaign effort has been wildly successful in engaging this core to interact with the campaign via their wallets. As the saying goes, money talks.

But will the Obama administration build on the buy in to enfranchise this population more deeply into the process of government? The technology used to gather the group is something the founders of the framework could not have imagined. The tools of interactive communication can be used to develop a more responsive populace and a government that is more responsive.