infobong.com the absurd courts the vulgar

Here are two sites that look really interesting, and I’d like to explore, but I don’t have the time to really check out.

• dotherightthing.com is a bubbler with a social-justice focus, which Jason Kottke compares to Digg.
• NewsTrust is a reputation system where users evaluate what they perceive to be a story’s accuracy. The site features both stories from the mainstream media, and “Independent Sources” like blogs and lefty journals.

I suppose it makes sense that “crowdsourcing” designs would enter the political sphere, but I’m skeptical of how useful voting and mobbing will be in addressing political issues on the Web. The latent Habermasian in me thinks these site don’t promote reasoned discourse as much as gaming and competition. If anyone has seen any insightful articles or blog posts on these sites, please post them in the comments.