Obama administration to continue use of YouTube in weekly chats

Did you know that President-elect Barack Obama and his administration have already begun making YouTube speeches on the Change.gov website?

The first of the planned weekly addresses by Obama was made available early Saturday morning. Although it is nothing more than the video version of the weekly Democratic addresses that will continue to be aired on the radio, it certainly is a clear effort to reach out to the Web 2.0 community and especially the youth.

Many have even called this the new age fireside chats made famous by Franklin Delano Roosevelt during the Great Depression.

Further pushing this agenda, a Washington Post article mentions that the Obama administration plans to have various members of his office also post interviews and Q&As on the website.

Added Ellen Miller of the Sunlight Foundation, a D.C.-based nonprofit that advocates for government transparency: "We're living, after all, in the Internet era. This is an individualized version of the 'fireside chats.' It's not delivered between 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. but whenever anyone wants to see it. I don't know if it necessarily creates transparency -- it's still a controlled, one-way message. But it creates the aura of a much more accessible presidency."

What does this mean, exactly? Well, it shows Obama's dedication to making this a very different presidency. This move also attempts to fuel interest in the government, even if these speeches are purely PR. Will it ultimately work though is the biggest question, and to that, I answer that only time will tell.