Public Discourse Privilege & Capitalism Brumley Project 1 Eng 301

COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION

Public Discourse, Privilege, Capitalism in play

Composition,

Purpose and

Emergent Technologies

My project community is the small town political campaign committee I am involved in until Nov. 2, 2010. The mission of the campaign is to help educate the Benton County, WA, community of interested and voters on the pros associated with NOT relocating a historic county seat and court house.

The group is comprised of "the small town's good old boys, and four "girls." Most of the members are in their late 50s to early 60s. There are three 30-something members, the city manager and a professional marketer and a local attorney. Many members are second and third generation locals. The hallmarks are successful business owner, money-ed, former elected official, current elected official, town leader or a specialist in a field, such as marketing. I am one of the three women and the wild card.

As a whole the committee-community is conservative (dare I say Republican), very old-school and linear in their approaches to getting things done (formal meetings on Wednesday, with full presentations, group vote on all agenda items). One of the members has been in the "Move the Courthouse" fray since 1984 and is the group's historian. She and the current mayor are somewhat schooled in campaigning, but the group as a whole appears not versed
as to what the news social mediums are (Twitter, Facebook, other) and the importance of the mediums. Market research they understand is important but gained this information half way through their campaign.

When I arrived on the campaign just after Labor Day, the group had agreed upon the campaign's arguments, was fund raising, had just distributed buttons, walked the local parade route, was building a county-wide list of places to talk/debate/discuss the issue. This was the meat of the campaign strategy.

Emergent Technologies and

Campaign Strategies

Initially Employed

Buttons, fliers, window signs, face to face meetings with service and business groups, letters to the editor, Facebook

Emergent Technologies and

Campaign Strategies

Now (and soon) to be employed

Campaign blitz has a time frame! Facebook, Twitter, Youtube video en process, community dance, Farmers' Market presence, street level campaigning, lighted reader board on busy Tri-City intersections, community readerboard campaign, yard signs, letters to the editor, local print newspaper advertising, Interstate exit info banner, targeted phoning, electronic newspaper advertising, use of graphic artist to create caricature graphic to brand postcard mailer, volunteers to go door to door, direct engagement with the media and community groups spanning high school to seniors, active solicitation of volunteers. Purposeful selection of media vendors in TriCities specifically to build good will and provide another method of dissemination.

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Keep-Prosser-the-Benton-County-Seat/125483824168157?ref=ts

http://twitter.com/BentonCoSeat

COMMONPLACE 1

The first commonplace was shocking to me in my first meeting as all the men in the group were, without asking, deferring all the tasks to the one woman, who is the paid meeting convener. She was diligently taking notes of all requested assignments and tasks. The note taker was no more a secretary to the group than the man elected chair and spokesperson. The common place was no one was asking who should be the organizer, it was assumed this ultra-organized woman would be; no one was asking how the duties should be parsed up, broken down, disseminated into work groups or by committee member strength: they were all handed without discussion to the note taker. There was no calendar, time-line, volunteer list, duties assigned or general (visual) organizational document in place which holds members accountable. It is assumed if you are present you will participate. But the feeling was slow, not nimble with shots of pellets in the dark...hope we hit the target.

COMMONPLACE 2

A second commonplace of the group was lack of curiosity, the lack of questioning when discussing strategies and tasks, if this is the best way for a task to be accomplished and what the outcomes or goals from each activity be. These individuals run successful businesses, organizations, municipalities. Their words are the first, the last and the unquestioned.

Counters to Commonplace:

The questions for me are: are the arguments the best ones available; what are your counter points to your opposition's arguments; should historical argument be employed at all; who are we talking to and are we talking in their language; what are our sound bites and what is the most nimble this group can be while still committing to the work of the group.

LOOKING FORWARD TO PEER REVIEW FOR SUGGESTIONS

FORMAT, en process, video? prezi?