Presidential Podcasting

If you're reading this, you know what a powerful tool a blog can be. You also probably know that a podcast can have just as much power. So it makes sense that the "most powerful man in the free world" practically has his own blog and podcast.

OK, so it's not exactly a blog and podcast, but the president's weekly radio address is available in written and audio format. When you think about it, it's really the same thing as a podcast. The man speaks about a topic of his choice, and you can download it and listen to it. You can even subscribe to it through an RSS feed.

Granted, the president doesn't need a podcast or a blog to express his opinions. He's the president, if he wants to say something, he calls a news conference and the press reports whatever he wants to say. But the fact that he uses a podcast to distribute and publicize his weekly radio addresses lends enormous amounts of credibility to podcasting.

Whether you like President Bush or not, his administration's use of technology, in this case, is commendable. Not since F.D.R. began his fireside chats on the radio has a president used a medium in such an effective way to communicate. Not only is President Bush riding the technology wave, he is making history by being the first president to join the podcasting community.