Lawmaker's virtual press conference

First there was the politicization of social networking, now politics has entered virtual worlds - in this case, Second Life, the MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game). Rep. George Miller (D) of California "appears to be the first member of Congress to hold something akin to a press conference in this virtual world, which is operated by Linden Lab and boasts its own currency and a population of more than 2 million registered users," CNET reports. Well, maybe it was an aide in the congressman's office and it wasn't *quite* a press conference, but it's the idea that counts, right? "Instead of typing responses to questions, Miller [or the aide controlling Miller's Second Life avatar] read them aloud via an audio broadcast that was piped in through a process like a telephone conference call." But the setting was so cool – in an "open-air amphitheater" surrounded by "mammoth video screens" under an orange sky. Ahh. ;-)