Mary Reid

I love that quote, and for quite a long time had it as part of the sidebar of my blog. The point that Stephen raises is quite an interesting one; can we be individuals rather than party hacks, but I'd argue he's wrong in his conclusion.
I'm not constrained in what I say anymore than other bloggers who talk about their work. I suppose if you have a world view where only the cloak on anonymity provides "truth" you might take a different view, but I'm happy being more accountable than that.

The quote is lifted from Stephen Coleman's excellent 'Afterword' in the 'Craze or Convention' report [http://www.hansardsociety.org.uk/programmes/e-democracy/blogging_report]. It was published in 2004 at a time when great claims were being about blogging in a political context, and the Hansard Society felt there was a need for objective analysis and debate (that is not code for a 'predetermined negative appraisal').
I think the argument, of which this quote is a small part, is best represented in the first sentence - "The problem facing politicians who blog is that they are professionally implicated in the very culture that blogging seeks to transcend". There was genuine concern at the time about politicians lifting 'politics as usual' and pasting it onto a new medium. Blogging, it was said, was indispensable for the modern politician; but there was little understanding of the technology, for example it's networking potential or the implications for the time and financial resources available to our elected representatives.
We are now a few years the wiser. Early-adopter politicians have had time to build up experience, make mistakes and identify benefits. Yet, political blogging in the UK is still embryonic and there is as much bad practice by politicians as there is good. Blogging's advantages are many - the potential to broaden and deepen political debate, alongside cost and efficiency benefits. However, these remain aspirations. Some simplistic questions that we need to consider are: Where are the citizens? Where are the comments? Where are the networks of open and informed deliberation?
I think those with an interest in debating the development of political blogging would do well to keep an open-mind for the time being. Many also have to remember to leave their commercial interests to one-side as well.
Ross Ferguson
[writing in a personal capacity]

It very much depends on the politician. Tony Blair would look ridiculous if blogging, especially since he is well known for a total lack of technical knowledge (doesn't stop his government claiming all sorts of rubbish about it though).
Richard Allen blogged as an MP, but being a tech-savvy person who engages in his blog and doesn't simply pontificate he came across very well.
Boris Johnson comes across fairly well in his blog, although it is less interactive, but that's probably because he's Boris ;)
I know I would love it if my local councillors and MPs would tell us what they're up to on our behalf, and a blog is a good way to do this. I wouldn't expect them all to function in the same way, some may be more interactive, others with no comment facility, but there is no one method to blogging.

Now I'm quite far removed from the stereotype of a blogger, so one of the things I wanted to explore was whether it was a medium that could be used effectively by anyone. But I am passionate about my political beliefs so maybe that compensates for my age, grey hair and even the fact that I have adult sons, who are decidedly cooler than me.
As for the citizen comments - my blog seems to have become an open space for discussion about anything ... see 24th Feb