Democracy in the air....

It is no surprise that there are lots of democracy-related items floating around out there. The US mid-term elections are coming up, and the media-driven anxiety is generating reflections as well as concerns. Three items struck me as particularly interesting.... NPR ran a series last week about our political language during the war on terror, and among the words focused on by Guy Raz was "democracy". Interesting stuff.... American Public Radio's Future Tense ran a piece last week on the idea of a "government-run voting portal" (in the mode of e-Democracy) put forward by Allison Fine, the author of Momentum. Interviewer Jon Gordon did a terrific job of asking tough questions in what otherwise might have been a five minute "puff piece". And on Weekend America, most of the two hours this week was devoted to election related stories, but most interesting was story on the impact of place on voting.... As for me, voted absentee this AM since I will be in New Hampshire (where I work) from dawn to 10PM tomorrow. Given the trends and inclinations in Massachusetts (where I reside), my vote will hardly make a difference. But this is a year when voting is less a rational act than an expression of anger or frustration (see here for interesting coverage on voting)Publish. I think the turn out will reflect that more than the outcome.... Tags: voting, democracy, politics, US politics, 2006 elections, NPR, Future Tense, Weekend America, Jon Gordon, Guy Raz, Allison Fine, e-Democracy, accountabilitybloke, Mel Dubnick

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Not so typical Times

If reading the Sunday New York Times is one of those lazy day pleasures (if reading any newspaper can be termed a pleasure these days), then having a leisurely coffee while scanning the relatively thin Saturday edition is usually merely a preparatory event. Typically the most interesting thing on Saturday is some arts/culture write up that might start on the front page. But today's edition of the Saturday Times is an eye-opening exception to that pattern. On the front page top right of the print edition (in New England at least) is a striking picture of a US soldier lying in mud, his bleeding wounds on the right arm and side visible. Two others are around him, obviously taking actions to get medical attention. Under the photo is the story of the sniper attack being depicted, with as graphic a description as one might read in the Times news section. Open to page A7, and the photos are even more dramatic. The events in the photos took place last Tuesday, and they hardly tell the story as well as the multimedia piece by C J Chivers found at the web site. There is so much to be said about this story that I hardly know where to begin. Given the context of the election this Tuesday, it is more than merely reporting by the Times -- its placement and presentation both in print and on the web is a statement than cannot be ignored. Yesterday's widely read (and commented upon) Op-Ed by Thomas Friedman (subscription required; reposted here for free) is a worthy accompanying editorial -- and perhaps nothing more need be said than to suggest that both pieces be read by all.... Tags: Iraq War, Thomas Friedman, politics, New York Times, C J Chivers, accountabilitybloke, Mel Dubnick

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