Ironically, television helped create the rote conventions it now hates to broadcast. By Plissner's logic, the more AOL shows, the less there will be to see. The good news is that the Web will allow citizens to craft their own conventions, in a sense. If they like trivia, they don't have to wait for Sam Donaldson to reminisce. If they want to find out what each candidate says about global warming, they don't have to be on the lookout for three sentences in an hourlong speech.
Many Web sites cater to specialized audiences of various kinds.
There will be no need whatsoever to attend. Another advantage of online convention coverage is the level of engagement it encourages. Because you can log on to do research, make a donation, or volunteer as soon as the spirit moves you, the Web harnesses political energy that would otherwise dissipate in front of the television. According to Michael Cornfield, director of the Democracy Online Project , this is what made John McCain's Web site so effective. In the same way, the Internet can keep any interest stirred up by the conventions alive in the dog days that follow.