While perusing the New York Times Web site I came across an interesting happening that I missed in the campaign world. Here's the story: An average Joe (pardon the pun) named Joe Anthony registered the myspace URL myspace.com/barackobama as a way to promote senator and encourage him to run for president. When Obama decided he would indeed run for president the myspace site grew in popularity, causing Anthony to spend a lot of time on the site. Eventually, Obama's campaign decided they wanted control of the site, so they entered into negotiations to bring on Anthony to help run the site under the direction of the campaign. The two sides couldn't come to an agreement, so Obama's campaign got myspace administrators to step in and get the site's control switched to the Obama campaign.
I've got mixed feelings about the whole situation. First of all, taking the myspace site from Anthony was a pretty poor PR move. This is especially the case because Obama does so well with potential young voters. By alienating Anthony and the reader's of the site under Anthony, Obama probably cost himself some support. Young people can be a sensitive bunch. If I had to guess, I would suspect that the comments portion of the Obama myspace was filled with lots of negative comments toward the Obama campaign for taking the URL with force.
Taking the site from a common guy also seems to go against a lot of what the Obama campaign has been about. Obama has created a campaign centered around individual voters. Obama has preached a grassroots campaign funded and fueled by common Americans, rather than the elite. Most of his contributions have been in the form of donations under $50. Alienating one of these common people may have undermined this key platform of Obama's.
On the other hand, I really question Anthony's motives in not giving the site up to the Obama team. Anthony clearly made the site to help Obama's cause, so when Obama became popular enough to need the site for himself, Anthony had already fulfilled the reason he registered the site. By keeping the site for himself, and demanding compensation from the site, Anthony comes off as selfish and calls into question his actual dedication to the Obama campaign. Obama also has a right to the URL since it features his name.
This is just another example of the exploration of new situations that would have never been considered in the campaign world prior to the internet.