The Political Power Of Blogs

Anyone with an understanding of blogs knows how much these grassroots communication tools can potentially influence social and political change over any political landscape.

It was bloggers who unearthed the shoddy journalistic practices leading to Rathergate during the 2004 election, and recently, blogs like the DrudgeReport and Gawker forced Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice to face the Hurricane Katrina tragedy, after it was discovered she enjoyed the Monty Python musical in New York City while New Orleans remained flooded.

Although written before these events, this academic paper - presented by Daniel W. Drezner of the University of Chicago and Henry Farrell of George Washington University to the American Political Science Association - details what role weblogs have played already in American politics and how they will continue to shape the landscape in the coming years.

This is a great resource for bloggers, journalists, educators and social change agents alike.