At some point, each of us had never written or read a blog post, knocked on a door, phonebanked, or donated. Yet something spurred each of us to take action, and DO SOMETHING to help our chosen Democratic candidate win.
What was it that got each of us off the couch and into the field, be it the digital field of the Netroots or to the doorstep of a potential voter?
I've always been curious about why other people got involved, and why some folks confine their activism to either online or offline participation. This Saturday at Netroots Nation, I'm excited to join a panel of ace field campaigners and bloggers, as we talk about offline and online engagement, and how to do both better, together.
If you're going to Pittsburgh or following along through the tubes, I hope you'll join Organizing for America's Jeremy Bird, FiveThirtyEight's Sean Quinn, and fellow Kossacks casperr, femlaw, Populista and myself as we discuss the interaction between blogging and field in the Obama campaign and beyond, in Yes We Did? How Blogging Can (and Can't) Support a Field Campaign.
As we gear up for a panel conversation on bridging the online-offline divide, I'd like to hear from y'all about how you got started in either--or both!--realms of political participation.
I was actually active offline before I got started online, which perhaps is unique for a member of Generation Y such as myself. It all started back in 2004, when I was living on the South Side of Chicago. My State Senator, Barack Obama, was running for Senate, and he seemed pretty darn cool. In fact, (and you may find this part hard to believe) I was bothering my co-workers with my Obama-enthusiasm so much, one of them invited me to a house party.
I went to the house party. Even though I was raised to be a Democrat who voted early and often, this was the first time I'd ever been to something so... political. It was full of interesting young people talking about politics and issues and volunteering. These people were cool!
I was inspired, and I wanted to be a part of it. I donated, distributed campaign materials, organized some voter registration. And when he won his Senate race handily, I promised myself, "When this guy runs for President some day, I'm going to stop whatever I'm doing and do all I can to help." I knew he was something special.
Flash forward to February 2007, after I had moved to Austin, Barack Obama had announced his candidacy for President, and was coming to my city for a rally! I joined 22,000 other Texans for a rally on Auditorium shores, and I was hooked.
I became a precinct captain, helped run a precinct convention for over 800 of my neighbors, hosted my own house parties, and organized Austin Vote For Change, a registration drive that enfranchised over 30,000 Texas voters.
I became a political blogger in 2006. While I was aware of the blogosphere, it was the Alito confirmation hearings that got me engaged online, following the hearings and faxing my senator and posting comments elsewhere about how to show opposition to the choice. After watching some highlights from the first YearlyKos in Las Vegas on CSPAN, I thought DailyKos seemed pretty cool, registered, and started commenting. Community diaries and friendly people here on DailyKos kept me tuned in and coming back for more, and eventually branching out to Burnt Orange Report, the best political blog in Texas, where I'm now a staff writer.
Between 2004 and 2008, I'd done some other campaign volunteering here and there. Both times blogging played a big role in getting me out the door--fellow kossacks Jeffrey Feldman and jonah in nyc hopped a MetroNorth to CT to help on primary day, thanks to the urging of other bloggers. I credit fellow kossack aimeeinkc for getting me off my butt in 2006 to help local Democratic campaigns. Her weekly roll-call series of folks who were knocking, calling, and donating made me get out there in Texas for the first time.
Now, What's Your Story?
Why do you volunteer offline, and/or participate online? What inspired you to enter either or both worlds, and what keeps you coming back for more?
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Yes We Did? How Blogging Can (and Can't) Support a Field Campaign
Saturday, August 15th 1:30 PM - 2:45 PM, Room 301/302
What is it like to have one foot in two different worlds—the world of campaign field organizing and the world of progressive blogs? Our panelists straddled the Netroots and the grassroots working for Obama, often serving as a translator between these worlds. Through an open discussion, this panel aims to determine the best ways to bring more people out from behind their computer screens into the field. We also seek to expand the online dialogue about campaigns with a broader set of voices and experiences. We will cover lessons learned, potential limits to supporting campaigns on the "big blogs" (messaging and fundraising vs. volunteer recruitment), roles of campaign blogs and third-party blogs; and how to gauge the effectiveness of blogging efforts.
Featuring:
Jeremy Bird, National Director for Organizing for America
Sean Quinn, FiveThirtyEight
casperr, DailyKos blogger and NYC activist
Pam Coukos (femlaw), OFA California
Katherine Haenschen, Burnt Orange Report
Karl Singer (Populista), Minnesota Progressive Project
If you missed them, my fellow Kossack panelists have posted diaries about their own experiences in advance of our panel. Check 'em out, join us in Pittsburgh, or follow along on the liveblog and Twitter feed to be posted during the panel.
Sean Quinn: Join Us In Pittsburgh
casperr: How A Lurker Became a Super Volunteer
Populista: Slacktivism: A Gateway Drug To Activism
femlaw: Tell Us What You Think At Netroots Nation
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But before Saturday, I want to hear from all of you and find out what makes all of you get involved.
Why do you blog? Why do you volunteer? Which did you do first, and if you only do one or the other, why's that?
See you in Pittsburgh!