Group Plans New Wireless Network, NY Times.

The announcement of the partnership comes as the wireless data business is growing, but one that wireless providers think has vastly more potential. For example, wireless data — predominantly text messaging — constituted 23 percent of Verizon Wireless revenue in the first quarter, up from some 17.5 percent in the period a year earlier, Mr. Moffett said.

The hope of the telecommunications industry is that users will begin using such service for a range of applications, including surfing the Internet on laptops and phones, and downloading music and video more often to those kinds of devices.

The disparate nature of the participants in the Clearwire partnerships also hints at the possibilities. Perhaps most significant is the participation of Google, the search advertising company, which has provided $500 million for the operation.

Google will provide the search engine abilities for the wireless platform, enabling it to sell advertising there. Google took a similar approach in an initiative to use a free Wi-Fi network in Mountain View, Calif., where the company is based, and in a failed plan for a Wi-Fi network blanketing San Francisco.

Now this is transparent, IPDI.

I’m watching Senate President John Valentine’s office on a live webcam. I can see what he’s doing and – most importantly – with whom he is meeting. So can you. Explorer users only (sorry, Mac and Firefox users) can go to http://senatesite.com/senatesight.html.

It feels intimate, open, and exciting – three words not always associated with the online communications of an elected officials. This afternoon, I talked with the creator of the SENATEcam, Ric Cantrell, the Chief Deputy of the Utah State Senate. Cantrell says the web cam “Serves to demystify the halls of power.” As he explains it, somewhere in Utah, an elementary student might access the web cam as part of a school project and realize, looking into the Senate President’s office that “this is what I want to do when I grow up.”

h/t Joshua Levy.

Five Questions for Walter Alarkon of The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room, Bluey Blog.

5) Much has been written about the right’s desire to keep pace with the left online. Do you think there is still a disparity or has the gap been narrowed?

There’s still a gap, but it’s not as simple as the left being better than the right. Liberal bloggers are miles ahead of conservative ones when it comes to fundraising; look at how the Democratic presidential and congressional candidates are blowing their Republican opponents out of the water. It’s thanks in large part to ActBlue. David All is trying to do the same thing for the right with Slatecard, but he’s starting a few years behind, and the fundraising numbers reflect that.

The left is also better at online activism. Markos Moulitsas, Matt Stoller and Jerome Armstrong have had followings for a few years now. They’ve been part of campaigns themselves, which means that they have a good sense of how to organize the grassroots and have the make a difference. Erick Erickson and the folks at RedState are also trying to do similar things with their action alerts.

GOP Blogger Unnerves Al Franken's Senate Campaign, AP.

That's routine stuff in the world of political blogging, but in the last two months Brodkorb has scored two direct hits that have the Franken campaign reeling. Brodkorb scooped the traditional media by detailing extensive bookkeeping problems in New York and California that ultimately prompted Franken, this week, to pay about $70,000 in back taxes to 17 states.

The stories have knocked Franken off balance as he prepares to take on Sen. Norm Coleman, in what's expected to be one of the most expensive and toughest-fought U.S. Senate races this year.

Democrats have tried to downplay Brodkorb by portraying him as part of coordinated Republican attacks.