Digital Politics with Karen Jagoda RadioActive

Patrice O'Neil, Founder of Not In Out Town, joins Deepak Puri, CEO of The Democracy Labs, to discuss gathering communities together to support conversations that drive understanding about fighting hate and racism. Patrice reports that screening their film Repairing the World in local gatherings has become a catalyst for people to share their stories about being harmed by hate and actions that can taken to fight racist attacks. NIOT has become a story center for communities who want to stand up together and learn from each other. Deepak and Patrice talk about: Inspiring people to take on hate and fight white supremacy Documenting incidents of hate and racism Engaging institutions that can take action Normalizing the fight against hate speech #NIOT #NotInOurTown @TheDemLabs #HateSpeech #Racism #RepairtheWorldFilm    niot.org RepairtheWorldFilm.org TheDemLabs.org  

Melanie Lavelle, Founder of Benefit Kitchen, joins Deepak Puri, CEO of The Democracy Labs, to discuss the impact of welfare reform and the creation of an app and database to empower people to understand what benefits are available.  Benefit Kitchen is focused on working with people to overcome obstacles and gain insight into the eligibility rules for federal, state, and local benefits. Melanie has discovered that many rules and hard-to-find information are designed to keep people from enrolling and discourage participation in programs.  The more these agencies hide, the more determined Melanie is to dig out the information and help people get necessary services and resources. Deepak and Melanie talk about: How people find out about benefit programs and who is qualified to participate Creating an app that helps people decide which benefits to pursue and how one benefit might impact another Who is most likely not to get benefits Why a mobile-first solution for this target audience is essential #BenefitKitchen @TheDemLabs #WelfareReform #GovernmentBenefits #FederalBenefits #StateBenefits #FoodStamps #SDOH #Seniors #MobileFirst  BenefitKitchen.com TheDemLabs.org  

Sandy and Lonnie Phillips, Founders of Survivors Empowered, join Deepak Puri, CEO of The Democracy Labs, to discuss their reaction and activism as a result of the murder of their daughter Jessi, killed in the Aurora Colorado theatre 2012 mass shooting.  Their organization is focused on regulating companies that sell ammunition and repealing the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act. Deepak, Sandy and Lonnie talk about: Who is selling ammunition and what information is being collected Who is building arsenals of ammunition, and the role of online sellers Addressing the trauma of survivors and victims of gun violence National actions being taken to repeal the PLCA act that provides immunity to gun sellers  #SurvivorsEmpowered @TheDemLabs #MassShootings #Ammunition #GunViolence #NRA #Activism #AssaultWeapons #RepealPLCA SurvivorsEmpowered.org TheDemLabs.org

Joe Fuld, Founder of The Campaign Workshop, joins Deepak Puri, CEO of The Democracy Labs, to consider how the role of political and advocacy campaign managers has changed over the last 20 years. The constants are the ongoing challenges for a campaign to refine the message, have the candidate or advocate's voice heard by the target audience, and find the pressure points to make the most short-term and long-term impact. Joe also emphasizes the need to keep innovating to build robust campaign strategies.  Deepak and Joe talk about: Driving civic engagement Power mapping Need for training to maximize the impact of advocates and candidates Working with underfunded causes to maximize resources #TheCampaignWorkshop @TheDemLabs #Organizing #Advocacy #Fundraising #CivicEngagement #PoliticalCampaigns  The Campaign Workshop TheDemLabs.org  

Rhiannon Ruff, Co-Founder of the digital agency Lumino, is a Wikipedia expert and author of the book Wikipedia & Crisis Comms. Increasingly, for voters and the media, Wikipedia is the go-to source for campaign and candidate information, and the accuracy of the information is critical for the site's moderators. While there are ways to get content edited, one presidential candidate's approach is a lesson in what not to do. We talk about: Why campaigns should care about Wikipedia What sources are used to create and update Wikipedia pages How content is moderated on Wikipedia Tips on how to get Wikipedia pages changed Advice for campaigns about creating a Wikipedia strategy and who should take the lead #LuminoDigital #Wikipedia #PoliticalCampaigns  LuminoDigital.com

Andra Watkins, The New York Times best-selling author and speaker, joins Deepak Puri, CEO of The Democracy Labs, to discuss the threat of Christian Nationalists to the future of our democracy. Indoctrinated as a child in Christian Nationalism, Andra understands the language of the calls to action in Project 2025 and warns about the potential impact on families and communities in her Substack: How Project 2025 Will Ruin YOUR Life.  Deepak and Andra talk about: How Christian Nationalists are different from other Christians  The true meaning of the words Christian Nationalists use when describing God's Law and Man's Law  What Christian Nationalists mean by pornography The need to drill down into the details of the 900-page Project 2025 Presidential Transition Project and not be distracted by the length The cost of fighting back against Christian Nationalists #AndraWatkins #HowProject2025WillRuinYOURLife @TheDemLabs #Project2025 #ChristianNationalists #ChristianNationalism  How Project 2025 Will Ruin YOUR Life TheDemLabs.org