News21’s investigation of national voting rights
is ongoing, and the rest of the country is
contributing to the dialogue.
Voting Rights, voter ID and the messy politics of
redistricting likely will be major issues in the
November election, and other media outlets and the
Twittersphere seem to agree.
So every weekday at about this time — noon PDT, 3
p.m. EDT — News21 reporters will post links to
articles, opinion pieces and trends that catch our
eye here in the Phoenix newsroom at ASU’s Cronkite
School.
It’s far from an exhaustive survey of current
journalism on voting and elections, but it’s our
way of staying current.
For more of what we’re reading, be sure to follow
us @WhoCanVote.
What We’ve Been Reading
“Holder’s Racial Incitement,”
(editorial, 06/01, Wall Street Journal)
“Florida GOP Takes Voter Suppression
to a Brazen New Extreme,” (Ari Berman, 05/30,
Rolling Stone)
“Former attorney general: Economic
policies will discourage Hispanics, not voter ID
laws,” (Alberto R. Gonzales, 05/31,
CNN.com)
“League of Women Voters of Florida v.
Kurt S. Browning,” (U.S. District Judge Robert L.
Hinckle, Ruling, 05/31, via Brennan Center for
Justice)
Twitter Trends
According to Twitter search engine Topsy.com, mentions of the
phrases “Voting Rights” and/or “#VotingRights” peaked
for the month on May 31, with more than 1,300
mentions in a 24-hour period.
Among those mentioning voting rights in their
tweets were dozens of opponents of the state of
Florida’s removal of voters from registration lists,
many urging people to sign an online petition.
Looking ahead, Twitter trends for the weekend
reflect interest in Tuesday’s recall election in
Wisconsin, as supporters and opponents of Gov. Scott
Walker and his opponent, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett,
chatter about the dramatic finale of that state’s
year-long political debate. #WIRecall isn’t trending worldwide — it
isn’t even trending in Milwaukee — but we’ll have an
update as Tuesday’s election nears.
News21 reporters, @AJVicens and @khantasha, will file from Wisconsin
Tuesday. Follow them for more updates.