Citizen Engagement- Mass Media and Politics

If you have been following along with me through the last couple of weeks, you may have noticed a trend where I have been talking a lot about citizens and their engagement and involvement in elections and politics as a whole. In one of my posts, I touched on the topic of democracy and whether or not "the people" (citizens just like you and I) truly have the power when it comes to democracy in America. This has been an ongoing debate not only in America, but all around the world, and it will likely continue to be debated for foreseeable future. Which means, that as of now and for the foreseeable future, there is no real definitive answer as to whether or not we the people have any true power or control.  That being said, it is up to us as "the people" to step up and take action to make our voices heard. The best way we can do that is to get out there, get involved, get engaged, volunteer, get your friends and family involved, and most importantly- GO VOTE! In my most...

  Now that we have talked about the election process and the electoral college, its time to talk about the upcoming election! We the people need to make our voice heard, and one of the best ways we can do that is by getting out there and voting! One of the biggest opportunities we have to vote is coming up on November 5, 2024, which is when we will have the opportunity to vote for our next US President. So today, I would like to share with you some information that may be helpful in preparing you for the upcoming election season.  As you all know, in each presidential election we start of with quite a large candidate pool in the two major parties and a medium sized third-party candidate pool. Here is what the candidate pool is looking like for the upcoming election so far. If you go to this link (  Who Are the 2024 Presidential Election Candidates? - The New York Times (nytimes.com) ) and click the pictures you can get more info on each of the below:  Throughout 202...

Over my last few posts, I have talked about when, where, and how to get involved in politics and the upcoming election.  As previously stated, there is an ongoing debate about whether or not "the people" truly have a voice. Part of that debate stems from the structure of our voting system and voting processes.  In most of our elections (Senators, Governors, Mayors, Ect.), candidates are awarded positions in office based on popular vote by the American people, however when it comes to selecting our President and Vice President, these positions are not awarded based on popular vote. Instead, they are awarded based on voting by the American people, and what is knowing as an Electoral College. The Electoral College was developed as a compromise between popular vote and Congressional vote and is in the US Constitution. Each state has 1 electoral vote for every member of Congress within their state, Washington DC also has 3 electoral votes, totaling 538 nationwide. Once the people ...

The word democracy originates from the Greek word's "demos", meaning people and "kratos" meaning power. Therefore, the word democracy, in loose terms, means ruled by the people, the people have the power. Now as we all know, there are many variations of democracy, and it looks a bit different from one country to another.  Here in the United States, the people have the power to vote for the nation's leaders at the local, state, and federal levels, however, this is done through an electoral system, therefore it is not necessarily the popular vote that wins the election. Once in office, those leaders now have the power to make decisions for the people. That being said, over the years, there have been many debates and discussions on whether or not those in office truly represent the needs of the people, whether or not the people have any real say on what happens in our country, and whether or not these powers have evolved with the times.  One side believes that ...