WASHINGTON -- One of the hottest sites on the Internet is making online video stars of Sen. Harry Reid and other Nevada politicians -- whether they want to be or not.

As posted in a clip on the popular YouTube Web site, photo cutouts of the Senate minority leader and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi are in front of the U.S. Capitol singing about a potential Democratic takeover of Congress.

"I want my geese to lay gold eggs for Easter," Pelosi demands while lip-synching to a tune from "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory."

Reid replies, "It will, sweetheart. Anything you say."

Another video shows a man holding up pieces of computer paper scrawled with marker. The signs are critical of Reid's handling of a 2001 Las Vegas land transaction widely reported earlier this month.

The man ends the static-marred 48-second video by dancing in his computer chair.

Another video shows an online blogger, Joe Marasmus, speaking to the camera and declaring approvingly during a five-minute monologue that Reid is a "total badass."

"This quiet skinny man with big ears has shown his opponents that he is not one to be (messed) with," says the communications senior from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Other Nevada politicians have found their way onto YouTube, which says it serves up to 100 million videos a day. They are portrayed sometimes in a positive light, sometimes mockingly.

If Las Vegans haven't gotten their fill of watching campaign commercials, they can watch most of them again on YouTube, whose uploading system makes it easy for videos to be embedded on Web sites and more reliable to view on any browser.

It also gives anybody with a high-speed connection, video camera and editing software the ability to sling proverbial spitballs at the powerful.

One of Sen. John Ensign's commercials was spliced by a student from Reno. So, when Ensign says he ran for office "to make Nevada a better place to live," the screen message jabs: "Better? A 5.8 percent decrease in the median income."

A blogger stripped the sound from a flattering commercial about Republican Jim Gibbons and substituted the 911 call made by Chrissy Mazzeo, the cocktail waitress who accused the gubernatorial candidate of assaulting her in a parking garage two weeks ago.

"Sounds like someone had too much time on their hands," Gibbons campaign manager Robert Uithoven said.

YouTube "has allowed people to engage in politics in a way they can create content," said Julie Barko Germany, deputy director of the Institute for Politics, Democracy and the Internet at George Washington University.

"You might not be out there volunteering, you might not be interested in volunteering, but can do this from your home," he said. "Online content like these are unregulated. ... For the most part, it's fair game."

Democratic Senate candidate Jack Carter posted a video at the MySpace networking site, introducing himself and asking Nevadans for their votes.

In 2004, blog writers were able to detail the foibles of political candidates. This year, the practice has gone visual. Campaigns hire "video trackers" to film opposing candidates, hoping to catch them saying something stupid or untrue. The end products wind up on YouTube, among other outlets.

In August, Republican Sen. George Allen of Virginia pointed out S.R. Sidarth, a camera-toting college student and volunteer working for Democratic opponent Jim Webb.

"This fellow here, over here with the yellow shirt, Macaca, or whatever his name is," Allen said during a campaign stop. "He's with my opponent. He's following us around everywhere. ... Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia."

The comment landed a blow against Allen as it sparked controversy over whether he was making a racial slur.

At the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, five members of the Young Democrats got together on a Saturday to make a video encouraging college students to vote. Blaming Republicans for increasing student debt, the video plays to a soundtrack of "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," by Good Charlotte.

"We were trying to find new ways to reach out to students," said Jason Fromoltz, the Young Democrats' president. "Young people especially don't watch the news channels; they don't see the commercials. With this election, I think we'll see more young people at the polls because of the energy generated online."

At the University of Nevada, Reno, the Pack Patriot, a conservative student publication, posted a video in September of an interview in which Gibbons discusses his support of the Millennium Scholarship program.

The interview was meant as a service to readers and not necessarily aimed at helping Gibbons' campaign, Managing Editor Corinna Cohn said.

"People that go out of their way to find this type of media already have their minds made up," Cohn said. "The people who are undecided will be more influenced by their peers."

A week ago, Doug Cogan, a Republican and real estate broker in Upland, Calif., uploaded a satirical singalong aimed at Reid's failure to report the Las Vegas land transaction.

The video parodies "This Land is My Land" with photos of Reid, some of them altered to make the Nevadan look goofy.

Conservatives "looked for alternative sources to get news," Cogan said. "We're able to get out a message very quickly, get people to watch it and respond. I'm hoping what I put out about Harry Reid will get people to ask questions."

Reid spokesman Jon Summers said: "Whether satirical or newsworthy, any medium that allows people to express themselves is a positive."

While the Internet allows candidates to broaden their audience, the anonymity it provides can pose challenges, said David Cherry, communications director for Democratic House candidate Tessa Hafen.

"In the old days, someone might tack (information) up to a tree," he said. "All you can hope for is that people are discerning, do their homework and find out the truth."