Burroughs Adding Machine

Interesting analysis of Obama’s Change.gov website and the new President-Elect’s use of YouTube. “It’s as if nearly everybody can have a seat at the table if they want to be included. All they have to do is add their voice at Change.gov and they can be part of the conversation.” As Donklephant notes, it’s great to see Obama’s administration embracing the power of interactive technology. For me, this shift reflects a melding of entertainment and politics (first begun with the user-generated YouTube/CNN-presented Presidential debates).

Over at The Huffington Post, an old Obama friend says that “The plain old Barack is gone,” while the NYT profiled close Obama friend and adviser, Valerie Jarrett, who is accompanying Obama to the Washington. The challenge of a friend/adviser in the White House, experts say, is transitioning from confidante to merely employee, perhaps without the immediate access, to the new President.