Change Letter

E-mail is often underestimated as a tool of political participation in the current social media mileu, particularly in comparison to blogs and online video services, and yet a recent story titled "Wasilla, Alaska, gadfly goes viral" illustrates how a single mass e-mail from a citizen can create an explosion of electronic discourse. After Anne Kilkenny sent her famous e-mail about the performance of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin as mayor of her city to friends and family outside of Alaska, she received a flood of e-mail in her inbox from critics and supporters who had seen it reposted on blogs and social network sites, and Internet spoilers debated about whether or not she was even a real person.