Social Networking, YouTube and the Feds

Need signs that this is not your father's federal government? Look no further than a new video contest announced yesterday by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius that uses the popular Web site YouTube to disseminate videos espousing on common-sense preventative measures for keeping in check the H1N1 virus.

President Obama utilized social networking to tap in to the 18-35 vote and capture the 2008 election, and the administration has only upped its use of various mediums to connect with the public. Various other politicians, too, have since embraced Twitter and Facebook to demonstrate that they're hip to the game. The latest effort to elicit short videos uploaded via YouTube acts as a mini-stimulus, if you will, as first prize is $2,500. The catch: the video must end with a plug of Flu.gov.

The World Health Organization expects a new strain of H1N1 to pop up this fall as students around the world return to school and mingle their germs. So far, 120 countries and various territories have confirmed nearly 95,000 total cases of the so-called swine flu, resulting in more than 400 deaths. The September magazine issue of School Transportation News will look at how schools battle infectious diseases on the bus and how the H1N1 pandemic is affecting operations.