Video the Vote
Encyclopedia
Video the Vote is a nonpartisan
grassroots
organization launched in 2006 to document problems at the U.S. polls on election day. Volunteer videographers were dispatched to document and report any irregularities that occur at polling places and boards of elections while they are happening, enabling the media and public to watch-dog the electoral process across the country.
of the Guerrilla News Network
, John Wellington Ennis
of Shoot First, Inc., and James Rucker
of ColorOfChange.org. The three originally sought to provide a platform to help independent filmmakers coordinate their efforts on election day—documenting election problems and pushing those stories into the mainstream media. The idea morphed into a populist program where ordinary people could participate. They'd simply agree to be on-call to document any Election Day problems that arise in their area; the only requirements being having a digital video recorder
, a cell phone, and broadband Internet access, and agreeing to respect governing election law. In 2006, Video the Vote was active in the following states: Arizona,
California,
Colorado,
Connecticut,
District of Columbia,
Florida,
Maryland,
Missouri,
New Jersey,
New York,
Ohio,
Pennsylvania,
Tennessee,
Texas,
Virginia
Nonpartisan
In political science, nonpartisan denotes an election, event, organization or person in which there is no formally declared association with a political party affiliation....
grassroots
Grassroots
A grassroots movement is one driven by the politics of a community. The term implies that the creation of the movement and the group supporting it are natural and spontaneous, highlighting the differences between this and a movement that is orchestrated by traditional power structures...
organization launched in 2006 to document problems at the U.S. polls on election day. Volunteer videographers were dispatched to document and report any irregularities that occur at polling places and boards of elections while they are happening, enabling the media and public to watch-dog the electoral process across the country.
Background
Video the Vote was created by Ian InabaIan Inaba
Ian Inaba is an American film and music video director, producer, and journalist for the Guerrilla News Network.-Music videos:Inaba directed the music videos for "Mosh" by Eminem and "Time and Time Again" by Chronic Future...
of the Guerrilla News Network
Guerrilla News Network
Guerrilla News Network, Inc. was a privately owned news web site and television production company that declared as its mission to "expose people to important global issues through cross-platform guerrilla programming." This was accomplished through the production of original articles, reporting...
, John Wellington Ennis
John Wellington Ennis
John Wellington Ennis is an American filmmaker, activist, and blogger from Los Angeles. In 2004, he directed a film starring Amy Poehler and the Upright Citizens Brigade titled Wild Girls Gone. He is the co-founder of Video the Vote, a non-partisan group interested in documenting problems at U.S....
of Shoot First, Inc., and James Rucker
James Rucker
James Rucker is an American social entrepreneur and co-founder of Color of Change.Rucker currently runs Color of Change, an online activist organization that claims to strengthen the voice of African Americans in the United States...
of ColorOfChange.org. The three originally sought to provide a platform to help independent filmmakers coordinate their efforts on election day—documenting election problems and pushing those stories into the mainstream media. The idea morphed into a populist program where ordinary people could participate. They'd simply agree to be on-call to document any Election Day problems that arise in their area; the only requirements being having a digital video recorder
Digital video recorder
A digital video recorder , sometimes referred to by the merchandising term personal video recorder , is a consumer electronics device or application software that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card or other local or networked mass storage device...
, a cell phone, and broadband Internet access, and agreeing to respect governing election law. In 2006, Video the Vote was active in the following states: Arizona,
California,
Colorado,
Connecticut,
District of Columbia,
Florida,
Maryland,
Missouri,
New Jersey,
New York,
Ohio,
Pennsylvania,
Tennessee,
Texas,
Virginia
Organizations Involved
- Common CauseCommon CauseCommon Cause is a self-described nonpartisan, nonprofit lobby and advocacy organization. It was founded in 1970 by John W. Gardner, a Republican former cabinet secretary under Lyndon Johnson, as a "citizens' lobby" with a mission focused on making U.S. political institutions more open and...
- Lawyers Committee on Civil Rights Under Law
- The League of Young Voters Education Fund
- People for the American Way FoundationPeople for the American Way FoundationPeople For the American Way Foundation is the charitable arm of People For the American Way , a progressive advocacy organization in the United States...
- Rock the VoteRock the VoteRock the Vote is a non-profit organization in the United States of America whose mission is to engage and build the political power of young people....
- Working AssetsWorking AssetsCREDO is an American for-profit company that offers mobile and long distance phone service. Based in San Francisco, California, Working Assets has raised over $65 million for nonprofit organizations such as GreenPeace, Planned Parenthood, Democracy Now etc.-History:Working Assets was founded in...
2006 election videos
External links
- "Gifts From 2006 to the Next Election", Bill Marsh New York Times, November 11, 2006
- 'Video the Vote' Effort Seeks Foothold All Things Considered, NPR, October 28, 2006.
- "This Time, the Election Will Not Be Stolen", Gary Moskowitz, WireTap Magazine, October 31, 2006.
- "Election Boosts Trusts in US voting systems" Ben Arnoldy and Ari Pinkus, Christian Science Monitor, November 10, 2006.