Will the White House Web site work as a social network?

It remains to be seen, though, whether more casual online supporters will take up arms for Obama when he takes office. The sort of Web site the Obama team seems to be envisioning—one in which the president and his citizens hold deep discussions about the controversial issues of the day—will surely be much less focused than My.BarackObama.com, which had a singular goal: to get Barack Obama elected. Obama's campaign Web site connected disparate people who shared a common passion; the White House social network will connect people who disagree with each other and with the president—and whose goals might be in conflict. So far, the Web hasn't had a great record of bridging social divisions. If Obama can change that, maybe he really is a different kind of politician.