Quote of the day: “…bloggers can influence the political discussion.” Read on to see why this is important.

Wired News says that the debates will be scripted and predictable, but what will really matter is what happens after the debate — i.e., how it is spun to change voter’s perceptions. It is recognized that blogs will play a major part in the post-debate debate so each candidate’s team is preparing to take advantage of this.

But both campaigns plan to take off their gloves on the internet. In some respects, the real debate, or a better semblance of one, will take place in cyberspace.

The Bush campaign threw the first punch. Earlier this week, it launched a massive rapid-response effort called Debate Facts to rebut challenger John Kerry’s assertions during the debates. The campaign will provide a live feed to about 5,000 conservative blogs that subscribe to its news alerts.

I’ll have a feed up tonight. What I couldn’t find was a straight RSS feed, which I think is a mistake.

“Our rapid-response effort is based on the premise that no attack or no misstatement will go unchallenged,” said Michael Turk, director of the internet campaign. His team of four programmers has been working on the software for Debate Facts for the past six weeks.

It’s called implementing a tactical plan. How are the Democrats doing?

The rapid-response effort by the Kerry campaign apparently won’t be as comprehensive. When asked about Kerry’s response operations early Wednesday afternoon, a representative said the campaign was still working on it. Amanda Michel, a member of Kerry’s internet team, e-mailed members of its Media Corps — supporters who contact newspapers, radio stations and TV shows — telling them that the campaign would provide a response after the debate.

“Please make sure you check your e-mail the moment the debate ends,” Michel’s e-mail stated. “We can’t provide you any more detail until the debate is over, except that all you’ll need is access to e-mail and/or a telephone.”

Ooh, e-mail and/or telephone. How very 20th century. Kerry is not only still fighting a 30-year-old war, he is campaigning using 20-year-old technology.

But why the Bush emphasis on providing a live feed to bloggers?

Political observers said coverage of the debates on blogs and websites and in chat rooms and e-mails could shape the public’s perceptions of which candidate won. Mainstream media outlets are no longer the sole source for political coverage and analysis.

Carol Darr, director of the Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet in Washington, D.C., said bloggers can influence the political discussion.

“To the extent that the campaigns send out their talking points to these people, they make it easier for them to articulate things that they saw in the debates,” she said. “It helps them be more persuasive. And everyone’s going to be talking about the debates the next day.”

And there you have it. We have moved beyond pundits talking about bloggers being a new political force, to a place where a major political effort leverages the recognized power of the blogger to gain political advantage.

Mainstream media will die a little tonight, and that is a very good thing. Power to the People!