Since I first looked at the new White House blog, Trip Notes From The Middle East (which debuted on Jan. 8 with a couple posts by White House Press Secretary Dana Perino), there have been eight more posts by Ed Gillespie, Counsellor to the President; Stephen Hadley, Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs; Bill McGurn, Assistant to the President for Speechwriting; Joshua Bolten, White House Chief of Staff; and on Jan. 16, none other than George W. Bush — well, you know who he is!
For the most part, the subject matter is serious, which is appropriate — serious trip, serious business, serious people. Yes, Gioia from California did ask the president: “A silly question, but who picks your attire for all the important events you attend? Love your ties.” Ever gracious, especially with such questions, the president answered: “I pick my own suits and my own ties. Thank you for the compliment about the ties, and thank you for your question.”
But it would be unfair to focus only on the lighter side, which is where the blog appeared headed early on. This is a White House that likes to control its own message, so why not add blogging to the repertoire? Any insight into the Bush White House is valuable.
The administration first ventured into online interactivity in April 2003 with Ask the White House, which it notes is “the first of its kind in politics” and “allows you to interact with Bush administration officials and friends of the White House.” According to the site, “citizens have participated in over 400 online discussions with Cabinet secretaries, Senior White House officials, behind-the-scenes professionals at the White House, and others.” Even the president!
Not that the White House reads E-Media Tidbits, but here’s a little navigation advice: There is no link for asking a question on the “Trip Notes” blog page. (Perhaps by design?) Nor is there an obvious link on the “Ask the White House Page.” I stumbled across the submit a question link by following a link to request chat session transcripts off the “Ask” page. It was there that I found Bush’s seven answers to questions, as well as a brief introduction and conclusion. Since the subject matter dealt with the president’s recent Middle East trip, the segment was added to the “Trip Notes” blog as well — economic use of limited material!
