White House Site Gets A :(

Sending e-mail messages to the White House might be getting tougher under a system the Bush administration insists is designed to give citizens better service, a newspaper reports.

According to the New York Times, e-mailing the president used to require only a simple e-mail address.

Now the writer must click through as many as nine Web pages, and fill out a form that asks, among other things, whether the message supports or opposes White House policy.

The White House began using the system, www.whitehouse.gov/webmail, last week. It claims the service will be more useful to both sender and recipient by reacting in "real time" to what people write.

Users must select a subject from a provided list — one which some users complained does not include "unemployment" or "jobs." Then, after filling in personal information, the user can type a message and send it. But the message is not read until the user receives an email from the White House confirming the message, and replies to it.

"It provides an additional means for individuals to inquire about policy issues at the White House and get a personalized response in 24 to 48 hours," Jimmy Orr, the head of Internet news at the White House, told the newspaper.

Orr described the change as a "work in progress" but an "enhancement." The new system was developed in partnership with a private firm that Orr would not identify.

People can still send messages to the old White House e-mail address, [e-mail], but it might not be read or get a response.

Some experts disagreed. Calling it "a very cumbersome process," Web design consultant Jakob Nielsen said, "It's probably designed deliberately to cut down on their e-mail."

Orr disagreed, describing the system as "pretty user-friendly."

Critics cited many flaws. Nielsen said one of the categories, National ID card, was an enigma: Does checking it off mean you're in favor or opposed, and what's the president's position?

Others wondered why a user has to take a position on a policy just to comment on it.

There are still other ways to register support or disapproval for the president or his policies. Comments can be phoned in to 202-456-1111, faxed to 202-456-2461, or mailed to The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20500.

And Vice President Dick Cheney can still be e-mailed the old-fashioned way, at [e-mail].