Why Democrats Rule the Web

Jay Newton-Small and I have a story in the next paper-product TIME, since digitized for the Interwebbing here, about the considerable disadvantage the McCain campaign has right now online.

Republicans, who once were far ahead of Democrats in whizbang TV technology, let their party fall behind the nerd curve as Howard Dean and later John Kerry revolutionized and then exploited online fund-raising in 2004. Four years later, the Democrats have widened that gap, using the Internet not only to raise cash but also to organize canvassers and plot get-out-the-vote efforts. Republicans say the Democrats' Web advantage is due to not just greater enthusiasm but also smarter strategies. "Everything Obama does is fundamentally about a people-powered democracy and apeople-powered campaign," says Mindy Finn, a Republican consultant who ran Mitt Romney's Internet operation. "McCain's message is different."

The story even comes with a podcast, which is what reporters like me do when they want to show that they are really "hip" and "with it."