Top 10 Web Political Moments

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On the eve of an historic election that has seen the Internet dominate the political landscape, The Webby Awards today named the Web's ten most influential political moments. From Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) breaking new ground with the first campaign Web site in 1994 to the celebrated CNN YouTube debates in 2007, the list charts the Internet's evolution from political postscript to powerful political tool.

1. First Candidate to have a Web site - Senator Dianne Feinstein (1994)
Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) became the first political candidate to have a Web site, permanently changing the way politicians raise money, organize volunteers, and interact with voters.

2. The Drudge Report Breaks Lewinsky Scandal (1998)
The Drudge Report, a little-known, one-man news site, beat the mainstream media on one of the decade's biggest stories when it broke the Monica Lewinsky scandal online. The Drudge scoop paved the way for the blogging revolution and foreshadowed future online blog coups like the downfalls of Dan Rather and Trent Lott.

3. Nader Trader (2000)
Ralph Nader and Al Gore supporters in different states used sites like NaderTrader.org and VoteSwap2000 to swap votes in order to help Gore receive enough votes to win the Electoral College. It became a symbol of how the Internet can be used in innovative, novel ways to challenge the traditional political system.

4. First Internet voting - France/Arizona (2000)
Tens of thousands of voters in Arizona and France logged onto their computers to vote legally for the first time via the Internet in March 2000.

5. JibJab - "This Land" (2004)
"This Land" an animation featuring a John Kerry/George W. Bush duet, became the Internet's first hugely popular political parody - enjoying three times the combined traffic of the actual candidates' sites.

6. Text Messaging Sparks Ukraine's Orange Revolution (2004)
Protestors during Ukraine's Orange Revolution used the Internet and cell phones to circumvent state-run media and mobilize massive protests, inspiring similar movements in countries like Lebanon, and giving democracy around the world a much-needed shot in the arm.

7. The Howard Dean "Scream" (2004)
The television clip of Howard Dean's infamous "scream" after his 3rd place finish in the Iowa caucuses was shared on thousands of websites and spread via email becoming the biggest political viral video of the pre-YouTube era.

8. Senator George Allen's "Macaca" Incident (2006)
With the help of a camera and YouTube, Senator George Allen's political gaffe became a media sensation and is widely credited with helping the Democrats take control of the U.S. Congress in 2006. It proved a powerful cautionary tale for misbehaving politicians everywhere.

9. YouTube Debates on CNN (2007)
With questions submitted from Santa Claus, a snowman, and 4,000 YouTubers across the country, the first-ever YouTube debates transformed the traditional format of the presidential debate giving the public a new way to participate in the political process.

10. Independent Obama Videos (2007/2008)
Garnering 10 million views each, Barely Political's Obama Girl and will.i.am's star-studded Yes We Can epitomized the advent of professionally-produced, high-quality Internet videos created independently of official campaigns.