Daily Digest: Bloggers Pressing Press to Start Pressing

The Web on the Candidates

• The "Bridge to Nowhere" Suddenly Goes Somewhere: Debate over Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's assertion that she told Congress "thanks but no thanks" on the so-called Bridge to Nowhere has been bouncing frenziedly around the Interweb since she hit the point during both her announcement speech and Republican National Convention address. Pinning down what, exactly, Palin's position was on the bridge between Ketchikan and Gravina Island is something that bloggers on the left have refused to let die, and the matter is bubbling up from the blogosphere to the traditional press. And that seems to be sparking a come to Jesus moment for the American press on whether they're willing to hunt for some version of the truth in the swirling chaos that is this presidential campaign. Stay tuned. #

• Now About That Bridge...: For that, there's FactCheck.org, the non-partisan site from the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. It's an excellent first stop for all your political claim debunking and rumor checking. Frankly, it may well be our best chance at retaining our sanity over the next 55 days. So, what's their verdict on the Bridge to Nowhere? Not surprisingly, it's rather more nuanced than you might hear elsewhere: "It's true that she did eventually nix the project. But the bridge was nearly dead already -- Congress had removed the earmark, giving the requested money to the state but not marking it for any specific use. Palin unplugged its life support." #

• Lessig: Who Can Be the Change We Need?: In a new slideshow, Obama supporter and well-known thinker Larry Lessig criticizes John McCain's tech bona fides from a provocative new angle. For a number of years, McCain held the gavel of the Senate committee that oversees technology, a fact that the senator highlighted in the tech plan he released several weeks ago. But if McCain was at the forefront of U.S. tech policy, then it's only right, suggests Lessig, to consider the nation's rather poor performance bringing affordable and reliable broadband Internet to every corner of the country during his tenure. What change (to use what seems to be the official word of the day) has McCain proposed that will put the U.S. back on the cutting edge of tech? Lessig: "I just don't see it." (via Sarah Lai Stirland) #

• Death Cab for Voters: Ultimate College Bowl is a new MySpace-based contest that pits universities against one another in a bid to be the most awesomest voter-registering-est school ever. The college that puts the biggest numbers on the scoreboard wins a Death Cab for Cutie concert for their campus. If you're a college student and on MySpace, grab the widget, throw it on your MySpace page, and play along.

• 140 Characters Worth of Might: Poynter's Maryn McKenna recaps how Twitter took centerstage during the recent Republican National Convention, calling the microblogging wonder the "surprise star of RNC coverage." One particularly eye-catching tidbit: Twitter and other webby tools are helping the Pioneer Press, the smaller of the Twin Cities hometown papers, compete with the larger and more established Star-Tribune. #

The Candidates on the Web

• Sponsored Travel: Are you an Obama supporter desperate to get to, say, Michigan, to go knock on some doors? ObamaTravel.org, a brand new supporter-run PayPal-powered site, connects potential Travelers for Obama eager to pound the pavement in swing states with sponsors willing to pay their way. Volunteers post a profile and their personalized ask: "I need cash to keep me fed and energized while I canvass. I need a place to sleep to recharge my bateries [sic] so I can get out there and do great work." Benefactors who chip in cash can follow the activities of the volunteers they sponsor. Alex Wise, one of ObamaTravel's founders, nails it: "It's sort of a political hybrid of craigslist and Team-in-Training." (Thanks commenter sweetal009) #

TechCongress and Beyond

• SpySpace: Later this month, the CIA, FBI, and National Security Agency are launching an ultra-classified social-networking system for spies. A-Space is a place for spooks to make new friends while keeping the old, sure. But it's also a tool for them to start connecting the dots on crucial information that for too long has been siloed in their own heads or work groups. Considering that it wasn't too long ago that many FBI employees didn't have Internet access (seriously, we're not even kidding) and resorted to shipping paper case files across the country from one regional office to another, there's a great deal of ground to cover -- and a gaping need for leaders willing to cover it. #