We’re about to witness the beginning of the YouTube Presidency, as The Washington Post has dubbed it. When Barack Obama takes office in late January, he plans to give a new twist to a longstanding tradition. The weekly presidential radio address will now “air” on YouTube, meaning that you’ll be able to access the president’s messages in video, whenever you want, on one of America’s most trafficked web sites. The upshot? Someone may actually listen to these weekly messages.
This move is part of Obama’s effort to use technology to communicate more directly with the American public. It’s a way of bringing FDR’s fireside chats into the 21st century. In addition to harnessing the power of Web 2.0, you can expect to find a laptop on his Oval Office desk, a first for any president. And, if Obama has his way, he might get to hang on to his Blackberry as well. (See this piece in the NY Times.)
In the meantime, here’s first of the YouTube videos that Obama has launched during the transition. Watch it below:
I hope someone in the administration thinks about the fact that a lot of schools block YouTube.
Also airing these on School Tube and or Teacher Tube would benefit many students/social studies teachers.