(Washington, D.C.) – NGP’s Director of Online Campaigns, Chris Casey, was featured in the March 8, 2006 Roll Call article, “Members Try to Keep Up Online.” The article credits Casey with introducing “Web site communication to the world of Congress-constituent relations.”

Casey continues his Web site communication work through his role at NGP. He heads the company’s department that designs and develops Web sites, e-communications tools, and online campaign strategy.

NGP President Nathaniel Pearlman commented, “NGP is proud to have on staff a pioneer of online communications. He continues to explore new ways for Democrats and their allies to communicate online.”

Casey is the author of The Hill on the Net: Congress Enters the Information Age.

The following is an excerpt from the Roll Call article:

How They Got Connected

“Many give credit to Kennedy for pioneering the Congressional Web site back in 1994, before the umbrella senate.gov or its counterpart house.gov existed. But not many have heard of a man named Chris Casey, Kennedy’s former systems administrator and self-proclaimed ‘accidental computer geek’ who found himself in the right place at the right time in 1994, when he decided to use his clout as a newly hired staffer to introduce Web site communication to the world of Congress-constituent relations.

“Casey had a hunch, even in the pre-Internet days, that something big was about to erupt. It started in 1993 when the young staffer found a hobbyist in Beverly, Mass., who had been hosting chat forums, much like today’s blogs, on a dial-in computer bulletin-board system he set up in his basement. Casey convinced the computer enthusiast to post Kennedy’s press releases on his personal bulletin board alongside chats about sports and gardening techniques. Soon enough, the dial-in community was talking about Massachusetts politics, and an idea sparked.

“‘It occurred to me that our office, like any kind of office, puts an immense amount of time in spreading our word, getting our message out,’ Casey says. ‘So could we put this on some sort of system? The fact that there were all these kinds of non-technical discussions led me to think that there was a place where people would be interested in hearing about the work of their Senator.’

“Once the White House got online in 1994, Casey teamed up with some Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate students to bring Kennedy onto the Net.

“At the time, Kennedy didn’t even have a computer on his desk, Casey says. (Then again, not many people did.) ‘And we never pretended that he was more directly savvy as a computer user than he was.

“‘Much to his credit,’ however, ‘the Senator was immediately supportive. The go-ahead I got was, ‘If you can reach my constituencies on the computer, do it.’’