When David Almacy, the White House Internet and e-communications director from 2005 to 2007, was taken by the Obama White House's new media director to a courtesy lunch in the White House mess at the start of the 44th president's term, it marked one of the very few times that the veteran of the Bush Administration had eaten in the West Wing's in-house cafeteria. That's because, says Almacy, "you have to be senior staff to have privileges to the mess." With refreshing frankness, Almacy describes his own status in the White House hierarchy as distinctly "mid-level management." So for the Bush White House's Internet director, it was the mess' take-out window. You could buy coffee and the like there, he says. But you have to pay for it on the spot.

In a wide-ranging conversation (from which I'll have more shortly), the now-Senior Vice President at Edelman used Obama White House new media director Macon Phillips' running tab in the White House mess as a demonstration what he sees as the considerable upgrade to the status of new media in the Obama White House. Almacy chalks up the boost to both committed leadership and the transformative change that becomes possible when a new gang comes into town.

In the Bush White House, Almacy had one dedicated staffer working under his direction. Eight or nine independent contractors handled the White House's needs when it came to programming, design, and video. Phillips, a Special Assistant to the President, has a dedicated team, a budget, and a desired place in the White House universe -- as a freestanding unit within the White House Office of Communications. In Almacy's day, the Internet was considered niche media. Online outreach was slotted under the Office of Media Affairs, alongside local cable TV news and the specialty press, like when ESPN covered the Super Bowl champion's visit to the White House. Phillips' shop is considered its own special hybrid team, a direct conduit between the White House and the country.