An interesting article in today’s Los Angeles Times focuses on Sean Tevis, a Kansan Democrat running for state legislature who, like many in the political process, found fundraising to be his biggest obstacle. Frustrated by his inability to generate funding, Tevis turned to popular webcomic XKCD for inspiration, creating his own comic that offered his opinions on political issues. The comic, and the content on the rest of Tevis’ site, is released under a CC BY-NC-ND license.

After releasing the comic, Tevis quickly saw his empty war chest fill up, with thousands of people donating small amounts that eventually amassed the politician over $90,000. While much of this success is due to Tevis’ knack for humorous writing, it also has to do with the fact that he’s distributing his content under terms that keep it sharable and easier to evangelize.