Mobile Democracy: Your Phone Is Political
Presenters
- Jed Alpert
CEO, Mobile Commons
Jed Alpert co-founded and is the chief executive officer of Mobile Commons, the leading provider of mobile technology for civic engagement. Mobile Commons serves nonprofit organizations, advocacy groups, government agencies, health care providers and businesses.
He previously served as president of Sunshine Amalgamedia, where he developed innovative syndication sponsorships models. Additionally, Jed created marketing and sponsorship programs for clients including Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, Pepsi and Samsung.
Prior to joining Sunshine, Jed worked as an attorney, focusing on entertainment and media law. He was a partner at Rudolph and Beer, and an associate at Paul Weiss. Jed’s clients included films such as Slingblade, Hurricane Streets, Sunday, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, The Cruise, Next Stop Wonderland, Three Seasons, and Star Maps and directors such as Bennett Miller, Jonathan Nossiter and Morgan J. Freeman. He represented many media companies including Open City Films, Rhino Entertainment and Sonic Net (now MTV Interactive).
Jed has produced numerous feature films, including Sunday, winner of the 1997 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize and the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award. He is on the board of Eyebeam, the Bay Area Video Coalition and National Safe place. He was previously on the board of Riverkeeper and has advised numerous film, arts and cultural organizations.
- Garlin Gilchrist II
Director of New Media, Center for Community Change
Garlin Gilchrist II, a native of Detroit, is director of new media at the Center for Community Change. After graduating with degrees in computer engineering and computer science from the University of Michigan, Gilchrist became a software engineer at Microsoft. During that time he co-founded The SuperSpade: Black Thought at the Highest Level, a leading black political blog; co-founded blacknetaction, a diverse, strategic collective of online activists; and served as social media manager for the 2008 Obama campaign in Washington State. Garlin is a highly sought-after thinker doing cutting edge work at the crossroads of traditional organizing and online activism. From members of Congress and the Federal Communications Commission to the Annenberg Foundation and Netroots Nation, from community centers throughout the country to the next generation of social entrepreneurs, Garlin has spoken before every constituency on youth empowerment in revolutionary organizing spaces, increasing civic engagement and participation though emerging technologies and protecting civil rights in the age of the Internet.
- Jamilah King
Colorlines.com
Jamilah King is the news editor at Colorlines.com, coordinating story assignments and covering urban politics, youth culture and Internet policy.
- Rachel LaBruyere
Mobile Commons
Rachel LaBruyere is currently director of mobile strategy at Mobile Commons. She works to find creative and innovative ways for campaigns and organizations to use mobile as an integrated part of their new media strategy. From recruiting volunteers and organizing house parties to making an impact on the legislative process, mobile is where it’s at, folks (at least according to Rachel).
Rachel was previously part of the Reform Immigration FOR America campaign, where she was responsible for growing one of the largest and most active mobile opt-in lists ever. Most importantly, Rachel took an exciting new technology and integrated it into an existing movement.
- Josh Levy
Online Campaign Manager, Free Press
Josh Levy is the online campaign manager at Free Press. He develops and implements Internet-based campaigns, programs and projects to encourage online activism, advocacy and fundraising. Before joining Free Press, Josh was managing editor of Change.org, a social action network where he supervised the launch of more than a dozen issue-based blogs. He previously worked as an associate editor for techPresident.com and Personal Democracy Forum, and was an adjunct lecturer in media studies at Hunter College in New York City. Josh holds a B.A. in English and religion from the University of Vermont and an M.F.A. in Integrated Media Arts from Hunter College.
- Katherine Maher
Video
Audio
- When
- Friday, April 8, 9:00am - 10:30am
- Where
- Waterfront 2
map (pdf) - Track
- Technology and Innovation
The mobile platform is a central piece of the new media infrastructure. Mobile phones are critical to revolutions in the Middle East and advocacy campaigns in the United States, and they are the way people connect with one another and access information across the globe. As the consumption and production of information – as well as participation in culture and in the future of the news – continue to rely on access to open broadband data connections and a new generation of smartphones, one thing is clear: Most users haven’t thought about the political nature of Internet-enabled smartphones.
This panel will discuss why the iPhone, Android phones and other smartphones and devices are political objects, and why the public should care about protecting these new tools for empowerment. Presenters will explore which policies will open up these platforms for democracy – and which policies could leave certain communities out of the digital debate.
