Blue State Digital

Vogue Sees Web Lessons in Obama's Campaign

Russell Adams, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on November 24, 2009 at 12:30 am PT

The Web consulting firm Blue State Digital helped the Obama campaign raise some $500 million online, catapulting a relative political novice into the Oval Office. Its next challenge: Help fashion bible Vogue magazine cash in on its far-reaching influence at a time when advertising dollars are bleeding out of print.

Weekend Update 10.31.09–Heartbreaks, Heartthrobs and Heart Attacks

Drake Martinet in News on October 31, 2009 at 12:10 pm PT

BoomTown’s week began onstage in front of thousands of chanting women. No, Kara wasn’t filling in for Oprah; she was doing something much cooler.

"Changing the World Through the Web": Video Interviews with Zuckerberg, Kutcher, Rospars and Shah

Kara Swisher in News on October 28, 2009 at 7:19 am PT

Yesterday, BoomTown moderated a panel at California’s Women’s Conference titled “Changing the World Through the Web” for a crowd of several thousand people. The panelists included Hollywood actor/producer, Katalyst co-founder and Twitter demigod Ashton Kutcher; Facebook’s Randi Zuckerberg, who leads the social networking site’s elections, breaking news and social change initiatives; Premal Shah, president of online microloan site Kiva.org; and Joe Rospars, founder and creative director of Blue State Digital and new media director for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. Here are video interviews I did with each of them.

Kara Visits the Women's Conference (Questions for Ashton Kutcher, Please!)

Kara Swisher in News on October 27, 2009 at 1:57 am PT

This morning, BoomTown will be onstage at California First Lady Maria Shriver’s well-known Women’s Conference in Long Beach, Calif., to moderate a panel titled “Changing the World Through the Web.” The panelists include Hollywood actor/producer, Katalyst co-founder and Twitter demigod Ashton Kutcher; Facebook’s Randi Zuckerberg; Premal Shah of Kiva.org; and Blue State Digital’s Joe Rospars, who was also new media director for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. In other words, as a group, they are all either prettier, smarter or better for the planet than anything I have ginned up so far.

Media Mogul Steve Rattner Goes to Washington, Where He Won’t Be Car Czar

Peter Kafka in Media on February 24, 2009 at 3:50 am PT

Steve Rattner, once one of the most prominent bankers in the media business, is going to Washington after all. Except that the Quandrangle Group founder won’t be getting the “Car Czar” job he was originally supposed to take in the Obama administration, since that job never got created. He’ll be an adviser, instead. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama has formally appointed his New Media team.