If anybody was still under the impression that the blogosphere was but an entertaining sideshow to political life, the events of 11 April 2009 have conclusively established that internet activism has finally matured in this country. Paul Staines, aka. Guido Fawkes of Order-Order, in his orchestration of the downfall of Labour spinner Damien McBride over particularly insidious e-mailed plans for an anti-Tory sleaze campaign, has shown how one man, a keyboard, and a bit of noise can accomplish greater change than thousands throwing themselves against the riot shields of her majesty's constabulary. The Easter weekend news vacuum has been filled by this juiciest and most gratifying (for some) coup against the government.

Of course, Staines is well versed in the little scurrilities and dirt-sifting which are the everyday occupations of the Westminster insider, having established himself as the broadest and deepest receptacle of every leak which drips out of the Downing Street and the Houses of Parliament. This latest story, based on leaked emails, might never have been broken by print media - yet the storm around it, as reflected in the Sunday papers, is evidence of how battles in the world of semi-public journalism can spill over into affairs of national importance. Staines has his part to play in providing the mud, let alone making it stick.

Some would say that the endless speculation and uncovering of scandals in the blogosphere is another example of a distasteful minority interest, blowing up dirty issues in order to continue personal or political vendettas against politicians and ideological opponents. Others, including Hazel Blears in a November 2008 speech to the Hansard Society, have similarly accused such blogs of encouraging ‘vicious nihilism’ and a cynical attitude towards politics in general.

But is such political blogging a childish game of rhetorical cat and mouse in which Guido and his foul-mouthed e-brigands constantly engage the forces of Derek ‘Dolly’ Draper and his band of left-wing buccaneers, or does it occasionally impinge on reality? Having followed a number of such blogs over the past few months, it does seem clear that they act as more than just sleaze mills. Lust for salacious ’tittle-tattle’ slowly transformed into an informed concern for lapses of standards and judgements and wider issues of policy and political conduct which were simply not getting any attention in the mainstream press. The meat and potatoes of ministerial expense fiddling, the silent changes to the Bank Charter Act of 1844, and Daniel Hannan’s momentous blasting of the Prime Minister at the EU Parliament; knowledge of all of this was gleaned not from the mainstream media, but from these bloggers.

Such news items obviously caused a heartfelt response from readers. The comments of members of the public concerning the published material initially appeared to be blackly humorous and anarchic foul language, employed self-indulgently; but over time this language revealed itself as the medium of genuine frustration. And despite the argument that blogging is the preserve of a minority, there is nonetheless a strong case for taking this new wave of internet activism much more seriously than in the past.

The world inhabited by Guido and others is not a dusty corner of the political world - it is the forefront. It is providing our news, and shaping the thoughts of politicians and ministers who now feel more threatened than ever by their digitally empowered citizens. The fall of McBride may be just a tasty little event in the short term; in the long run, it should be seen as the beginning of something bigger. Not only an ethical cleaning up of our politics, but a realisation that how politics was done in the past is no longer how it will be done in a present and future of information-saturated citizens. This country once boasted of its political class - unfortunately for them, standards will need to be raised ever higher as the information asymmetry between government and public is reduced.

We can’t cut the fuse, but we can empty the keg. I feel that even Guido would not want to let it explode.

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