Sunday, January 14, 2007

LibDems take an e-lead on news

Regular readers of this blog (that's John AND Eileen!) will know that two of my most strongly held views are that e-campaigning - the use of e-mail and the internet - will be major determinants of voting intention within ten years and that the LibDems, despite much bragging otherwise, are currently lagging behind both other parties in the use, design and content of their national and local websites.

So it was with some dread that I recently signed up to the e-News service of all three major parties and prepeared my inbox for what was to come.

Cameron has, so far, put e-campaigning at the heart of his strategy to sell himself and the new-look party. Why then is the national website offering such a pisspoor e-News service. They come irregularly, mostly out of date and in lots of seperate e-mails making it difficult to read. I actually got quite annoyed by this and ceased even opening them. Still, that was better than Labour whom have yet to send me anything that isn't about the Labour Supporters Network or an offer to join the party.

So who can fill this apparent national e-News void? Step forward the LibDems.

Their website is crap, full of crap and actually getting crapper ... but their e-News is bang on the money. It comes each day (including Sunday) and offers a digest of their news output including some stuff otherwise hidden away on their website. It all comes with a three line summary and then a link to the full story. It may not look pleasing but it is full of news and in a format that I want to recieve it in.

Projects such as Webcameron are great at pleasing a certain section of the online community but I think all parties such offer equal thought to those who want news and policy, as well as podcasts and downloads. Maybe Dave should sign up the LibDem e-News and see what our party should be doing?

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