When I got started in 2007, one of the first things I asked for was an overhaul of the website… a piece of junk the Republican Party of Virginia was being charged someone’s salary (yes — it was that much) to “maintain” with an antiquated CMS and terrible graphics. It was unworkable, unnavigable, and unresponsive… at best.
Of course, there’s politics behind why that is. Some folks on Executive Committee at the time didn’t trust (and still don’t understand) the blogosphere. There were some hurt feelings from some higher-ups about letting the previous web providers go. Above all, static content and message control was the mantra, whereas surrendering the site to bloggers, activists or others was tantamount to heresy.
In a nutshell, that’s why we could never get the RPV site into a true blog. Nevertheless, baby steps are being taken to make sure the site gets to where it needs to go (functionality at this point has trumped style, but this is good in the long haul). Commonwealth Conversations — RPV’s revamp of “The Red Stater” newsletter — is a solid step in that direction.
The new RPV website will indeed rock. That’s a promise, not a forecast.
But back to topic….
Those consultants that RPV fired? The ones influencing some key folks at RPV not to engage the blogosphere? Unfortunately, they’re the same people running John McCain’s website, who pretty much just ripped the Obama site and made it McCain-ier.
I will give the McCain team some credit. They are trying. But this website looks as if it was made for the “silver surfer” (65 years or older) rather than the social networking crowd. It’s a damned mess, lacking originality and completely unfocused.