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Rock the Vote: 'Controlled by Nobody's Agenda but Our Own'

Tue, 09/22/2009 - 02:02 Ryan Lynch
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When I was a teenager, I knew only two things about Rock the Vote: 1) It was affiliated with MTV; and 2) It registered voters.
 
But as time has gone on, I’ve noticed some edges that don’t quite square. First, Rock the Vote defines itself as supporting “progressive” policies, while at the same time claiming nonpartisanship.
 
Let’s give them the benefit of the doubt and define “progressive” in its most literal (and least political) sense. I don’t mean to pull a George Stephanopolous, but here’s the definition of “progressive” from Merriam-Webster: “making use of or interested in new ideas, findings, or opportunities.”  
 
Rock the Vote’s interest in new ideas or findings takes me to point #2, which is that the organization opposed personal accounts in Social Security even though the Center for American Progress found that 74 percent of our generation (which Rock the Vote supposedly represents) supported that reform measure. You can read about that here.  Why would Rock the Vote spurn new findings and misrepresent our generation?   
 
One clue came at the beginning of this year, when Rock the Vote hosted an inauguration concert for President Obama. The tag line? “Hey, America Feels Kinda Cool Again.” I guess America wasn’t cool under Bush. But presumably that has nothing to do with partisanship.
 
This brings me to Rock the Vote’s latest nonpartisan work--supporting the current health care reform efforts. In explaining the group's position, a vice president of the organization told Modern Healthcare, “Young people are the most supportive of health care reform of any age group.”
 
I have to admit this is a clever talking point. It may be possible that young people are the most supportive of health care reform when we talk in general, abstract terms.
 
But unfortunately for our generation, Rock the Vote is misleading the public by continuing to misrepresent our views. According to new findings from Gallup, our age group is the LEAST supportive of the reform plan for which Obama is campaigning. Only 34 percent of us would urge our representatives in Washington, D.C., to vote in favor of the current reform.
 
Two questions:  
 
1) What are the odds that Rock the Vote changes its position on health reform in light of this new finding?  
 
2) If Rock the Vote is not “progressive” in the most literal sense of the word, in what nonpartisan way is the group claiming that description?  
 
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Ryan Lynch's picture

Good point

Submitted by Ryan Lynch on Tue, 09/29/2009 - 00:43.

I'm glad you bring that up. Some people have suggested that much of what passes for media bias can more appropriately be explained as the result of human beings working under tight deadlines.

There is no doubt that some reporters allow personal opinions to compromise their final product. On the other hand, I think some suggestions of media bias border on delusional.

I'd like to learn more about this issue of laziness vs. bias vs. other factors that affect how news is reported. I would welcome any input or suggestions for further reading.

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Phil's picture

Interesting points about Rock the Vote

Submitted by Phil (not verified) on Tue, 09/22/2009 - 19:28.

Ryan,

Totally agree with you. You bring up many good points in your argument. Rock the Vote has changed its ways.

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Ryan Lynch's picture

Thanks, I don't know if RTV

Submitted by Ryan Lynch on Fri, 09/25/2009 - 01:45.

Thanks, I don't know if RTV has changed or if I've just grown up a little bit. I'm actually not too concerned about the possibility of partisanship, as I think it's very hard for policy/activism groups to remain exactly in the center.

What's more concerning is that RTV claims to represent an entire generation, when in reality the organization often takes positions even a majority of us would not support (a maximum of 26% of us agreed with RTV on Social Security, 34% on health care reform). This obviously becomes a problem when RTV is looked to (for example, by the media) as the voice of young people. It's also disingenuous on the part of RTV to be talking in general about what young people want and then advocating a solution we expressly do NOT want.

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Anonymous's picture

Lazy Media

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 09/26/2009 - 15:30.

This is the kind of viscious cycle which the lazy media perpetuates by deferring to organizations like RTV without any real facts or relevant analysis of their own. Very sad.

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