Generation Engage Engages Its Generation

June 19, 2007 — -- What came first? Young voter apathy or the cold shoulder from people in power? A grass-roots group connecting young Americans with their political leaders thinks it knows the answer.

"Young people do not suffer from a lack of interest. They suffer from a lack of access," said Justin Rockefeller, the youngest son of Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va.

And so this fifth-generation son of one of America's most powerful families has teamed with Adrian Talbott, son of Brookings Institution president and former deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott, to engage youth in the nation's political discourse.

Engaging Generation X

It's called Generation Engage, a nonpartisan civic engagement group founded shortly after the last presidential election in 2004, and the conversation is spreading.

Starting in New York, the group has branched out to Raleigh, Charlotte, Miami and, just this week, the Rockefeller-Talbott team is in San Jose to launch the latest incarnation of its mutual dream.

When asked why they founded Generation Engage, Rockefeller responded with one word: "Frustration."

"This frustration stems from the privileged background I have and I'm not talking about money. I'm talking about meaningful conversations about politics. I grew up discussing politics around the dinner table," Rockefeller told ABC News.

By becoming involved in Generation Engage, Talbott and Rockefeller are hopeful that politics will become more than just dinner conversation for the next generation. They are hoping that it will inspire all young people, but particularly those who do not attend college, to participate more and realize that their vote counts.

Cate Edwards, daughter of former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, has joined the effort as well, serving as a board member of Generation Engage.

"It is obvious to me how there is a direct link between politics and people's lives, but few groups seemed to focus on young people who do not go to a four-year university or college. We decided to do something about it," Rockefeller said.

Taking the Conversation to the People

Generation Engage borrows heavily from the late House Speaker Tip O'Neill's maxim: "All politics is local." The group takes politics to the people.

A young armada hired by Generation Engage plans political discussions at locations where young people normally gather, such as a club, church or coffeehouse.

It arranges for a variety of politicians to come to the venue for about 40 minutes.

Then, thanks to an iChat video conference provided by Apple, the debate between the young people and politicians is sent out over standard broadband lines to at least two other venues in different cities. The video is linked on Google and the message has the ability to reach thousands.

"We are fundamentally changing the way politicians and young people communicate and we could only do that with the help of Apple and Google," Rockefeller said.

"It is almost disarming that it [the process] is so straightforward and simple," said Talbott.

The way Talbott and Rockefeller see it, politicians can either spend money on a 30-second television ad or they can take 45 minutes and participate with Generation Engage and actually interact one on one with the voters.

"The politicians are genuinely up for it. They need the most votes for the least amount of dollars," said Talbott.

And if the politicians cannot find time in their schedules to attend the conference debate, Generation Engage will happily send an employee with a camera into the politician's office to broadcast from there.

Among the politicians who have participated in Generation Engage discussions are Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb.; former President Clinton; Justice Stephen Breyer; Edwards; former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich; former Vice President Al Gore; and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., just to name a few.

Net Politics

Generation Engage, like every Webwise 2008 presidential candidate, is also cleverly harnassing the power of the Internet.

Its home page is strikingly simple with two side-by-side video players that allow users to stage a debate between two politicians who may never debate one another in reality.

According to Talbott and Rockefeller, the war in Iraq has been the top hot topic for the young voters involved with Generation Engage followed by environment, climate change and inner-city issues such as safety and police protection.

The topics are not always so complex though, according to the two co-founders. Sometimes the questions are simply asking what the difference is between a Republican and Democrat.

And now, Generation Engage is giving young people an extra opportunity to become involved with politics, aside from the usual debates and videos.

The organization posted its "2007 Engagement Survey" on its home page Monday. The survey is designed to measure young voters' participation in politics beyond the voting booth. Its 26 questions measure the volume of the participant's involvement in politics and on a larger scale, in the community.

As an incentive for filling out the survey, the participant receives 10 free iTunes downloads courtesy of Apple.

The survey was designed by John Della Volpe, the director of polling at the Institute of Politics at Harvard. Volpe volunteers by advising Talbott and Rockefeller.

While people are generally impressed with Talbott and Rockefeller's initiative to get young voters more involved, given their family and political ties, the question of who pays the bill often arises.

The Knight Foundation, a national foundation that looks for opportunities to improve communities and journalism, is the primary supporter of Generation Engage. The organization also benefits from a Google Grant, receiving free advertisement space on the popular search engine.

"We've been overwhelmed by the public's reaction," said Rockefeller. "We expected it to be a gradual growth to all 50 states, but daily we receive e-mails from all over the country and even the world, asking when Generation Engage will be brought to them."