The BlackBerry
wireless e-mail pager became a part of
American political history during the 2000 Presidential
election. It was the device upon which candidate
Albert Gore, Jr., having privately conceded the election to his opponent
George W. Bush and on his way to deliver a speech making it official, received the message "
never surrender" from campaign manager Donna Brazile. Though Gore was not convinced, further messages received by aides on their own wireless pagers made it clear that the battle for
Florida was not yet decided and the election could still be won by the Democrats.
So there you go -- one of the most momentous political events of the late twentieth century, all made possible through wireless technology.