Apparently President-elect Barack Obama is something of a Blackberry addict. Besides meaning he probably reads Gizmodo for all the latest Blackberry Storm info, this also means he has his Blackberry with him at all times, in the typical executive belt holster position. The trouble is, he's going to be President of the United States in January, and there are strict email laws and traditions that will all but bar Obama's favorite gadget from the Oval Office. Hmm. Maybe change isn't all it's cracked up to be?Unfortunately for Obama, already seen by many observers as a rather connected and tech-savvy politician, being president won't be as open or free wheelin' as the campaign trail. For starters, there's the Presidential Records Act, which requires all official correspondence be made available in the public domain. It means those 3 a.m. Blackberry emails he was known for on the trail will probably have to stop, or at least be curtailed in some way. Nevertheless, aides to the president-elect said he hopes to be the first president ever to have a laptop at the ready on the historic Oval Office desk. But will the laptop be enough? Apparently, during the campaign Obama forwent paper when reading or creating reports to or from his advisers, opting instead to have them delivered directly to his Blackberry. His messages to contacts were "generally crisp, properly spelled and free of symbols or emoticons," sources said of "No Drama Obama's" Blackberry email correspondence. Obama even kept up to date on the latest news and blog postings thanks to that hunk of black plastic at his side, with clippings and posts delivered daily (scaled down for time constraints by his advisers). But this could all end on January 20, 2009. With great power comes great responsibility—just no Blackberrys, Mr. President, please. [MSNBC]

Advertisement