California Insider

With a former White House webmaster now working for him, Gov. Schwarzenegger has been steadily pushing the envelope when it comes to politicians using the Internet to communicate with their constituents. He's had live webcasts of his events, and his top appointees contribute to an ocassional blog. Today, Schwarzenegger will do a live web video interview session with the public. A local television reporter will screen questions submitted by the public, and the governor will respond to the ones she puts to him. You can watch it at 10:30 a.m. here.

It's no accident that the home page for the event features a picture of Schwarzenegger with reporters at a press conference. Or that the governor's main home page has been redesigned with recent entries getting headings like "top story" and "more news." This is all part of an attempt by the governor's office to communicate directly with voters, without the traditional filter of the mainstream media. The Bush White House has used the same approach, with a very obvious anti-media edge. Schwarzenegger is doing it with a smile.