Get Out the Why? Video Contest » Why Tuesdays

Do you know why Election Day is always on Tuesday?

admin — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:17:57 +0000

Specifically, “the Tuesday after the first Monday of November”? If not, you’re not alone- we’ve asked two Presidents, piles of pundits, and many members of Congress. No one could tell us.

Get Out the Why (GOTW) is a national call to anyone with gumption and a video camera (or video phone!) to ask this question of our elected leaders, which we feel is important to our democracy’s health: Why Tuesday?

If you want to learn the answer yourself, please check out the Why Tuesday? site at www.whytuesday.org.

We’re trying to start a national conversation about election reform: voting is the right on which all others are based, and too few Americans are exercising that right. How can we do better?

The Why Tuesday? campaign thinks that moving Election Day from the middle of the week might be one answer, and GOTW is a chance for everyone to bring our lawmakers and representatives- with whom these decisions ultimately rest- into the dialogue.

So, go out there and Get out the Why!

Here’s how it works

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 22:55:54 +0000

Anyone who gets an elected official on camera answering the question, “Do you know why we vote on Tuesdays?” gets their video posted to our site, along with their explanation and thoughts, for other users to view and comment on. And for those who get certain State and Federal officials, there’s a cash prize for your efforts.

That’s about it. We like simple.

Some Rules

admin — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 22:56:22 +0000

Neither Get Out the Why nor Why Tuesday? condones or encourages any illegal or inappropriate behavior, and anyone who submits a tape obtained through such means will receive no reward nor any posting of their submission. Before receiving their prizes, all winners will have to complete a signed statement confirming that they have complied with these rules, and have not obtained their interview through illegal or inappropriate means including- but not limited to- staking out an official’s private residence, stalking an individual, modifying their tape to give a false or deceptive impression, or damaging any public or private property in their efforts to get the footage. We reserve the absolute right not to post or consider for a prize any video that we deem to have been inappropriately obtained, of insufficient quality, or not in keeping with the rules of the contest. Clarity of sound and image, as well as the quality of the question and the elected official’s response, will all be judged.

NO DUPLICATES! Once we have selected a video for a given elected official, we can’t give out any prizes for or post any more videos of that person. In the case of prize-eligible videos, this means the prize will go to the first video that we receive that meets the criteria herein, regardless of when it was taken or posted elsewhere on the Internet. Check out this site to stay up-to-date on whom we already have clips of.

Some restrictions: members of the press corps, employees of political campaigns, and employees of any State or Federal official may submit video, but are not eligible for any cash prizes.

For us to receive your submission, you’ll need to submit the form below with code to embed your video. Note: The video cannot be hosted by us, but must embed and be playable on our blog. Video may be hosted, and embed code retrieved, from YouTube, Google Video, Daily Motion, Myspace, Veoh, and Vimeo. Again, only videos that are hosted elsewhere, but can embed and play right on our blog will be considered for the contest.

Deadline.

The deadline for all submissions is January 31st, 2007.

The Lucky Winners and Cash Money.

The first qualifying clip we receive of each U.S. Senator and each Governor answering the question will receive a prize of $500.

One clip of each Congress-person (Member of the House) will get a $300 prize.

And, best for last: if you get any U.S. Vice-President, sitting or former, answering the question you’ll receive $2500, and if you get any U. S. President, sitting or former, it’s $5000.

In addition to the above, three lucky winners will receive $1500 on the basis of a clip that’s particularly amusing, timely, or well executed. For these selections, we will also contact the official questioned and give them a chance to make a second statement elaborating on their response, which we’ll post alongside the video.

You get some dough. Our elected officials get educated about an important issue. Everyone wins.

So go, Get out the Why, and send your submissions in for us to check out.

Asking the Question – Some Tips

admin — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:56:53 +0000

You may just have the time to blurt out, “Senator Such-and-Such, do you know why Election Day is a Tuesday?”

But, if you have more time, you can also provide a little preamble: “Senator, I know that voter turnout is very important to you, and of course Tuesday elections are a central part of your professional life. I was wondering if you’d ever wondered why we vote on Tuesdays, and if you could tell me why?”

And if you really have a lot of time- or if the official you ask actually answers correctly- you can follow up: “Ms. Senator, do you think it makes sense that we vote on a day chosen for the convenience of voters over 150 years ago, when the way we work, live, and travel is so entirely different today?”

Ultimately, as long as you’re respectful but firm, you’ll get an interesting answer and we’ll be delighted to see it.

The Lucky Winners and Cash Money

admin — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:57:23 +0000

The first qualifying clip we receive of each U.S. Senator and each Governor answering the question will receive a prize of $500.

One clip of each Congress-person (Member of the House) will get a $300 prize.

And, best for last: if you get any U.S. Vice-President, sitting or former, answering the question you’ll receive $2500, and if you get any U. S. President, sitting or former, it’s $5000.

You get some dough. Our elected officials get educated about an important issue. Everyone wins.

So go, Get out the Why, and send your submissions in for us to check out.