Spanish Voters Hit YouTube

It's not only in the US that Internet video is changing politics: Ahead of Spain's neck-and-neck March 9 election hundreds of voters have posted questions for Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero and his opponent on YouTube. Zapatero has responded to several, Reuters reports, but the more strident—such as the transvestite berating the conservative challenger on gay marriage—have gone unanswered.

Zapatero's Socialists hold a thin lead in polls that have been unreliable in the past. In 2004, the Madrid train bombings helped Zapatero sweep to victory, but this year, the BBC writes, the key issue is the economy: After 14 years of growth, Spain is starting to sputter. Zapatero, who has never lost an election, remains the favorite, but barely. (More Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero stories.)