The Election SOS newsletter is a dedicated resource for journalists covering the 2020 election and its aftermath. We provide critical resources to help with your coverage, safety and service.
WHEW. Welcome to 2021. 😱
The election news cycle is starting ferociously with an attempted coup by the President and many Republican party members, as well as the nail-biting runoffs on Georgia. Below are resources and reminders around how to best serve the public during this volatile and fragile period in American democracy.
Repeat and emphasize the truth
Audio obtained by the Washington Post of President Trump's call with Georgia's Secretary of State has brought an overwhelming start to the year for fatigued journalists and audiences alike. As journalists are diving deep into democracy coverage, we urge you to consider your audience first. People are coming back online after a holiday after disconnecting from their phones and news. Remind yourself that your readers might be not neck-deep in election coverage. Newsrooms need to explain facts clearly, simply and repeat themselves to tackle baseless claims and serve readers.
What does "sedition" actually mean? Provide context and definitions
Words like coup, treason, traitor, sedition, anti-democratic have been surfacing to the top of the conversation. But does your audience fully understand the meanings behind those words? Provide the definitions of these terms and context to ensure accessible coverage. Once mentioned, repeat and relate that information again. Read this example from PolitiFact, republished by Poynter.
Serve Georgia's constituents with news they can use
Georgia's Senate runoff elections are tomorrow (Tuesday), and while the race is receiving a lot of national coverage and attention for the Senate's control, we encourage you to provide service journalism to Georgia residents. Are you offering them comprehensive voting guides? Are those guides available in more than one language? With an avalanche of national news, consider taking the mic from politiciansand re-accessing what your audience wants to know. This week, and any week for that matter, would be a good time to turn up the listening and see how you can help support democracy by switching power to the people. For more journalism resources on Georgia, you can explore our First Aid Kit.
High-polarization hasn't dissipated after the presidential elections and will remain after Jan. 20. As conspiracy theories and misinformation rampages online, heightening and inciting more conflict, see how your reporting can address it.
It's our last Pitch This! We hope you enjoyed the resource, and you can still explore post voting day ideas and learn more highlights from the project here.
This podcast episode discusses the historical changes of power and why politicians don't share their honest thoughts for fear of upsetting their colleagues or constituents. However, once someone loses power (ex. a politician falls out of favor), then people distance from that person quickly. This episode begs the question: When will those backing Trump's wild claims abandon him? Likely not until he has little to no power left.
This summary of current research also offers a number of regulatory and policy solutions to combat the decline of local news and the spread of mis- and dis-information.
How did Joe Biden win the presidential election? And what lessons does his victory hold for how he should govern? This piece offers an overview of the electoral mathematics behind Biden's win.
Cuebiq, a company that analyzes location data for advertisers and marketers, identified more than 250,000 likely voters across the country, based on anonymous smartphone location data and public databases of polling locations from Google and the Center for Public Integrity. This analysis found that voters in the very poorest neighborhoods in the country typically took longer to vote, and they were also modestly more likely to experience voting times of an hour or more.
Just days before an already tense U.S. Senate election which has placed considerable attention on Georgia, one county says its employees are being threatened. The Cherokee County Sheriff's Office said that it learned of a threatening email that was sent to several county employees regarding polling locations ahead of Georgia's second election day.
As we spend the coming days watching how Republicans respond to the Post’s reporting, best to keep one eye on local outlets and consider their role in maintaining an ever-tenuous democracy. Read on for some coverage examples and lessons.
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