Edwards, Politics, Gnomedex, Sausage Making

Quite a big deal was made of John Edwards making the keynote at Gnomedex, and of course there is a good deal of play in the papers and some place called the blogosphere. Apparentlly Chris Pirillo locked out the press for the event, and I wonder if he locked them out for the discussion that is ongoing as I write this post.

With Dan Steve Gillmor at the microphone conducting a live Gillmor Gang podcast, an Edwards rep defending his candidate's positions and approach, and a pretty unruly room full of geeks, I'm not sure if this is entertainment, grass roots politics at its finest, the blogosphere at its puffed up best, or merely one silly tour through the sausage making factory. There are moments on this webcast that would put Howard Dean's infamous scream to shame. (BiTTorrent should be the third rail of the poltical debate in the next election?) There are also moments of sheer brilliance. I'm guessing that political operatives will be listening to this discussion many times before they send candidates in to meet a room full of bloggers again.

Fascinating.

pic via Josh Bancroft of Tiny Screenfuls