Sorry, make that AlarcOn. I've been spelling it wrong (due to platform limitations here) without the critical accento over the O - a detail that's as meticulously in place on the sentator's site as his hair in every photo and the fonts and formatting on his new AlaBLOG. (Hell, there's even a cute little pronunciation guide for his name.)
Alarcon's initial post (not permalinked) is a pretty typical howdy-do for any candidate, reminiscent of the first Hertz-blog post. Posts the candidate:
It is great to be in Los Angeles to officially launch our online campaign office.
I am especially happy to be "blogging" for the first time, and I am excited that I will be able to communicate with you directly within this forum.
As I travel throughout our great city, I will continually keep you updated about our campaign to build middle class dreams.
Please take a moment to click around our site. Within the site, you will be able to spread the word to your friends about our campaign, vote in our online poll, learn how to register to vote, host a get together, and much more.
Thank you for your support!
It'll be interesting to see whether Alarcon's capable of actually blogging, instead of just "blogging." (Note to Hertzberg - the blog's looking a little old - you might want to freshen that up a bit. )
A confusingly linked Quicktime campaign ad And a persistent Flash blob on every page with messages like, "Richard will be the environmental mayor" and "Richard will support and expand neighborhood councils."
One minor web-geek disappointment - no site credit identifying the architect. It's built in seamless PHP/Flash, and certainly has the crispest design of any of the mayoral sites to date. It'd be nice to know who's responsible.
According to the Times, Alarcon unveiled the site to 150 supporters yesterday at a Van Nuys movie theater.
The real question is whether any of the candidates can leverage the community-building power of the web into actual donations and votes. It's one thing to throw up a flashy Web site. it's entirely another to use the medium to connect with people, transmit your message effectively and persuade them to help put you into office.
Hunh. Pretty snappy. 
