A leader of President Obama’s groundbreaking online campaign is advising charities to ditch e-mail newsletters, calling them “a waste of time,” reports the Web site Third Sector Online.

Speaking at a presentation in London, Thomas Gensemer, managing partner of Blue State Digital, said short, personalized e-mail messages to supporters that offer clean instructions for participation are a more effective online strategy. “E-mail is still a killer application but only when used properly,” he said.

Blue State ran Mr. Obama’s electronic campaign, which raised more than $500-million in Internet contributions and spawned tens of thousands of online support groups.