"I am progressive, I am liberal. I make no apologies." Those were the first ten words written by Markos Moulitsas Zuniga when the Web log Daily Kos was launched in 2002. At the time the Bush Administration was hellbent on invading Iraq. Daily Kos gave people an outlet to vent their frustrations. Then the blog took on a life of its own. It became the medium through which bloggers could organize, take on "the gatekeepers," and work for political change.

In his new book, Taking on the System:Rules for Radical Change in a Digital Era, Markos documents the power of online organizing. In the tradition of Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals, Taking on the System, he lays out the game plan for contemporary activists: How to connect, coordinate, and command attention; how to embrace inevitable attacks and make them work for you; and how to design powerful narratives and drive them into the the mainstream. OffTheBus caught up with "the blogfather" recently and discussed the new book.

How is blogging changing the landscape of activism today? How does it translate into action and how does "Taking on the System" address that?

Taking on the System is not a book about blogging. It inevitably discusses that because it's a tool among many that activists now have to use. It used to be certain elites would have a monopoly on discussing those issues, whether it's politics, culture, music, art, etc. What's happening is technology is allowing people all over the country (and the world) to discuss the things they care about. Once they start talking about those things, a lot of times, they will act on those issues. The book talks about how technology has democratized the ability of people to gather around the issues they care about and work for change. Blogging is a tool. But so is YouTube, Facebook, MySpace, e-mail lists, etc. It's a way to grow networks and reach out beyond your geographic space. Like if you were in Chicago, you'd basically be stuck in Chicago politics or limited to a ballot in your own precinct. Now people in Alaska can get excited about a senate race in Oklahoma and vice-versa. They can send money, do virtual phone banking, etc. There's a lot of things they can do to get involved and work on the issues that excite them.

Critics often say blogging is chipping away at the power of community and activism. Do you believe it's replacing the current means of activism or is it adding to it?

Well as you read in the book, I'm a critic of traditional protests. I think an effective modern activism campaign requires a strong media component, because if you do something and nobody hears about it, you've basically wasted your time. What you want to do is maximize the number of people that find out about your action and use that attention to bring people over to your side. In the book, I talk about street protests that didn't work. It's not that the tactic is bad, it's the way it's traditionally been done. "Let's all get together and make a lot of noise! Yay! Free Mumia!" That is absolutely useless. It's almost counterproductive. So you have to have a media strategy, and blogs are a medium. It's one way to get the message out and what I talk about in the book is you work your way up the media hierarchy. If you are effective and your activities are compelling enough, they will jump over into traditional media outlets. One excellent example was Cindy Sheehan. Her protest in Crawford, Texas, began as a blog and e-mail list phenomenon. It worked its way up the ladder. MoveOn started promoting it and then it jumped ov read more »
Propose An Amendment   Take To Committee  Lobby   Veto
Add to:      

In his new book, Taking on the System:Rules for Radical Change in a Digital Era, Markos documents the power of online organizing. In the tradition of Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals, Taking on the System, he lays out the game plan for contemporary activists: How to connect, coordinate, and command attention; how to embrace inevitable attacks and make them work for you; and how to design powerful narratives and drive them into the the mainstream. OffTheBus caught up with "the blogfather" recently and discussed the new book.

How is blogging changing the landscape of activism today? How does it translate into action and how does "Taking on the System" address that?

Taking on the System is not a book about blogging. It inevitably discusses that because it's a tool among many that activists now have to use. It used to be certain elites would have a monopoly on discussing those issues, whether it's politics, culture, music, art, etc. What's happening is technology is allowing people all over the country (and the world) to discuss the things they care about. Once they start talking about those things, a lot of times, they will act on those issues. The book talks about how technology has democratized the ability of people to gather around the issues they care about and work for change. Blogging is a tool. But so is YouTube, Facebook, MySpace, e-mail lists, etc. It's a way to grow networks and reach out beyond your geographic space. Like if you were in Chicago, you'd basically be stuck in Chicago politics or limited to a ballot in your own precinct. Now people in Alaska can get excited about a senate race in Oklahoma and vice-versa. They can send money, do virtual phone banking, etc. There's a lot of things they can do to get involved and work on the issues that excite them.

Critics often say blogging is chipping away at the power of community and activism. Do you believe it's replacing the current means of activism or is it adding to it?

Well as you read in the book, I'm a critic of traditional protests. I think an effective modern activism campaign requires a strong media component, because if you do something and nobody hears about it, you've basically wasted your time. What you want to do is maximize the number of people that find out about your action and use that attention to bring people over to your side. In the book, I talk about street protests that didn't work. It's not that the tactic is bad, it's the way it's traditionally been done. "Let's all get together and make a lot of noise! Yay! Free Mumia!" That is absolutely useless. It's almost counterproductive. So you have to have a media strategy, and blogs are a medium. It's one way to get the message out and what I talk about in the book is you work your way up the media hierarchy. If you are effective and your activities are compelling enough, they will jump over into traditional media outlets. One excellent example was Cindy Sheehan. Her protest in Crawford, Texas, began as a blog and e-mail list phenomenon. It worked its way up the ladder. MoveOn started promoting it and then it jumped ov">            |   Bookmarks  

Allan Kassirer makes frequent business trips to Boston -- eight in the last year -- and has back-to-back meetings in each one.

His company is building a film studio in nearby Weymouth, Mass., and "every meeting is delicate, critical and on the meter," said Mr. Kassirer, a founding partner of the International Studio Group, based in Woodland Hills, Calif.

So rather than book conference and meeting rooms or travel around town for business breakfasts, lunches and dinners, he schedules all his meetings at the Taj Boston, in the same two-room suite where he also sleeps.

WARSAW, Poland — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her Polish counterpart signed a deal Wednesday to build a U.S. missile defense base in Poland, an agreement that prompted an infuriated Russia to warn of a possible attack against the former Soviet satellite.

The deal to install 10 U.S. interceptor missiles just 115 miles from Russia's westernmost frontier also has strained relations between Moscow and the West, ties that already troubled by Russia's invasion of its former Soviet neighbor, U.S. ally Georgia, earlier this month.

Rice and Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski signed the deal Wednesday morning.

"It is an agreement which will help us to respond to the threats of the 21st century," she said afterward.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the agreement came after tough but friendly negotiations.

"We have achieved our main goals, which means that our country and the United States will be more secure," he said.

After Warsaw and Washington announced the agreement on the deal last week, top Russian Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn warned that Poland is risking attack, and possibly a nuclear one, by deploying the American missile defense system, Russia's Interfax news agency reported.

Poles have been shaken by the threats, but NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop dismissed them Tuesday as "pathetic rhetoric."

"It is unhelpful and it leads nowhere," he told reporters at a NATO meeting in Brussels, Belgium.

Many Poles consider the agreement a form of protection at a time when Russia's invasion of Georgia has generated alarm throughout Eastern Europe. Poland is a member of the European Union and NATO, and the deal is expected to deepen its military partnership with Washington.

Polish President Lech Kaczynski also expressed "great satisfaction" at the outcome of the long months of negotiations.

Poland and the United States spent a year and a half negotiating, and talks recently had snagged on Poland's demands that the U.S. bolster Polish security with Patriot missiles in exchange for hosting the missile defense base.

Washington agreed to do so last week, as Poland invoked the Georgia conflict to strengthen its case.

The Patriots are meant to protect Poland from short-range missiles from neighbors _ such as Russia.

The U.S. already has reached an agreement with the government in Prague to place the second component of the missile defense shield _ a radar tracking system _ in the Czech Republic, Poland's southwestern neighbor and another formerly communist country.

Approval is still needed the Czech and Polish parliaments.

No date has been set for the Polish parliament to consider the agreement, but it should face no difficulties in Warsaw, where it enjoys the support of the largest opposition party as well as the government.