Handshakes Countering Web 2.0

Like handwritten thank you notes, handshakes have become more meaningful as they’ve become less frequent –McCullagh drives home this point. As the internet becomes a more powerful tool for running campaigns, face to face engagement becomes even more essential.

The internet is not going to be the end-all-be-all for political campaigns, at least not in the near future. I’m not denying the efficiency of Obama’s or Paul’s grassroots, online campaigns, as a matter of fact I think they are quite savvy; but until we are no longer trudging out to the polls and are voting for our president online, traditional interpersonal communication will continue to matter, perhaps even more so than before. And thank God.

I mentioned in last weeks class with Dan Nye that Web 2.0 and all of its glory makes me nervous. Cyberspace is casting a large shadow over the real world; people have become so immersed in virtual worlds that they forget about the real world outside their window and the real people sitting right next to them. It is the real world, real connections that matter.

Mr. Nye was adamant that the relationships he has formed on LinkedIn are in fact very real –and I’ll respect that (I do think this is truer for LinkedIn connections than it is for FB and MySpace “friendships”). Yet still, it is hard for me to accept that you know a person better after exchanging an email or two than you do after meeting someone for lunch. Face time is valuable, as is seeing how people act on their toes…when they don’t have the comfort of sitting behind a computer screen. It is an interesting paradox.

I also think it is important to keep McCullagh’s background in mind when reading this article. He is not a dinosaur ignorant about the tech movement –he’s actually a big part of it.

Nonetheless, I love that light is being shone on McCain and the success of his old-school tactics. I’m glad to see that a handshake still means something.