"A kinder, gentler version of the internet"

I was struck over the weekend by this excellent recap of Joe Biden’s digital strategy, which talked about how his team focused on being “authentically Joe” in all corners of the internet, and—maybe most importantly—ignored the Twitter echo chamber:

“The whole Biden campaign ethos was ‘Twitter isn’t real life,’” Mr. Flaherty said. “There are risks of running a campaign that is too hyper-aware of your own ideological corner.”

What would we all be capable of if we ignored what others expected of us?

My favorite part though was the way the team defied the cynicism so prevalent on the internet these days. The article’s author, Kevin Roose, even admitted he was skeptical: “After all, we were talking about the internet, which doesn’t seem to reward anything uplifting or nuanced these days.” I’ve also been guilty of assuming the worst about the internet lately, losing some of the pragmatic optimism that defined my expectations pre-Obama years.

Thanks, Biden digital team, for giving me an iota of hope again.