VoteGopher.com
the problem:
“We Dig. You Decide.” That's our motto.
We at VoteGopher understand that our country's future is hinged largely upon the decisions that our leaders make today. As the youth who will comprise this next generation of Americans, we have a stake in shaping that future. Every day, our elected officials face difficult choices on a range of issues, and we want to make sure that you - the American voter - know where they stand. Our writers, primarily Harvard undergraduates, have all taken a non-partisan oath.
Through our efforts, we hope to encourage more Americans to become engaged in the 2008 presidential election and our nation's political discourse. By providing a one-stop shop for unbiased information on the candidates and currently 25 issues, we seek to stimulate not only an interest in the political process but also a desire to vote on Election Day. While our site is intended to help all Americans, it is designed to especially encourage the young and busy demographic to participate in the democratic process.
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people impacted:
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At VoteGopher.com, we pride ourselves on the unique, yet crucial approach we bring to election coverage. Concordant with our mission, we reevaluate and revise the site each and everyday to ensure that it is fulfilling its purpose. Some of the features that make us a valuable resource are:
-Issue-Based, Not Horse-Race Coverage: What topics are most important to you? VoteGopher breaks the election down into 25 issues, a body of analysis that is constantly expanding.
-Thorough, Yet Concise: We know that you want to make an informed decision, but we also know that life is busy. Most Americans don't have the time it often takes to navigate through the media jungle for accurate or specific information. VoteGopher takes this situation into consideration and provides you with detailed candidate comparisons in an extensive, yet easily-digestible format.
-Gives You The Tools To Pick A Candidate: Our interactive multimedia give you instant access to the most relevant news, videos, articles, quotes, and blog postings. Our "My Ballot" feature helps you organize your thoughts and see exactly where the candidates stand in relation to your beliefs.
-Non-Partisan, Unbiased Coverage: All of our writers take an oath promising to give you what you need - untainted and objective information.
-An Interactive Approach to Politics in America: VoteGopher provides real people with real information, compiled for busy Americans and political pundits alike. We want our users to become involved - both in shaping our website and our country.
the plan of action:
VoteGopher was founded in 2007 by Harvard students committed to focusing on what matters most in a presidential election: the issues. Too often, the important information is drowned out by the media's tendency toward horse race coverage and its obsession with trivial stories. Recognizing what he saw as a void in election coverage, VoteGopher Founder and CEO Will Ruben, with the help of a team of passionate and motivated students, created a resource to provide voters with easy access to the information necessary to making an informed choice.
Our site gained acclaim during the 2008 presidential primary season as voters sought out tools for helping them sort through the crowded fields of Democratic and Republican candidates.
This month, VoteGopher will relaunch its site to feature a more comprehensive, up-to-date, and interactive version. The revamped site features in-depth coverage of more issues, a sleeker interface for quicker navigation, and innovative tools such as My Ballot and the Multimedia Finder that make it easier than ever for users to meet the candidates and learn about the issues.
As our venture grows, we continue to work hard to compile non-partisan, accessible news and analysis of all of the candidates and their campaigns. We hope that you too join us in our work here at VoteGopher to refocus the debate on the issues.
how you can get involved:
Others can help by spreading the word about VoteGopher, partnering their organizations with us or uploading our content on their site, and sharing the information they learn on our site with friends and family. Any way we can encourage people to vote and, importantly, cast an informed vote will help! In terms of the grant, a grant would help us as we have used significant funds in the development and relaunching of VoteGopher 2.0, our new website. We could use DoSomething and it's participants' outside perspective, ideas, and active involvement. We need students from other schools and young people from all parts of the country to spread the word about VoteGopher as an election resource.
