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Yearly Kos Youth Panel

Over at Left in the West, Matt Singer reminds me of my duties. I've neglected to mention that I'm going to be speaking on a number of panels at this year's Yearly Kos Convention.

  • Building the Progressing Youth Movement: I'm the moderator for this panel, which will feature the aforementioned Matt Singer, founder and CEO of Forward Montana (who I'm sure will have more wisdom than misinformation), Shauna Thomas of Young People For, Alexis McGill of Citizen Change (aka "Vote or Die!"), Jane Flemming Kleeb of Young Voter PAC and formerly YDA, and Adam Conner, blogger, Roosevelt Institution co-founder, YP4 Fellow, and former member of CDA.

    It's a packed panel, but I'm hoping to keep everyone on task, talking about how their various organizations (and similar orgs) are linking up to form a coherent, strategic progressive youth movement, how they can better work together, and most importantly where our budding movement is still failing. Stop by if you are at the convention.
  • Framing From the Top: Some how I ended up as a participant in the framing panel. I think maybe it's because I slipped something into Jeff Feldman's drink at RootsCamp NYC. Featuring giants like George Lakoff and Rick Perlstein, my main objective will be to not look dumb.
  • Technology and Politics: The Next Generation: Finally, I'll be on a panel where we gaze into our techno-crystal ball to see what's in store for technology and politics in the year 2012. It's kinda like that old Conan O'Brian skit, only dorkier. Should be a lot of fun.

After a redonkulous Friday filled with three panels and what will surely be large amounts of drinking (courtesy of the Drinking Liberally folks), I'm taking a day of vacation and spending my Saturday at Lollapalooza. It's been a while since I've been to a big outdoor festival like that, so I'll be chillin', listing to some music, and maybe checking out the merch/booth area to see if there's any kind of music activism going down. Right now I know I'll be checking out Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah, The Hold Steady, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Spoon. Don't know who else. Maybe the Roots, but I've already seen them like three times. I'll be the guy in the old-school Music for America T-shirt.

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July 24th, 2007 9:47am
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Lucky Bastard!

Submitted by Alex UA on Tue, 2007-07-24 10:16.

I had such a blast last year, when I got paid to go and screen The War Tapes. I am really, really disappointed that I can't attend this year, but after a year of activism, I can barely afford to take the bus, let alone fly to Chi-Town and put myself up in a hotel. Ah well...

And how did you manage to get yourself onto three panels?

Panels

Submitted by Michael Connery on Tue, 2007-07-24 11:29.

I know people who bribe people.

Seriously, I have no idea. What the hell am I going to say during that framing panel? It's all about how the next President needs to reframe issues.

Wait! Don't Move To Canada

Submitted by Fred Gooltz on Tue, 2007-07-24 14:17.

by Bill Scher. it's got great re-framing advice that is far more practical and knowledgeable about Political Realities than Lakoff's pie in the sky BS.

if you don't have it, borrow mine. take a highlighter to it and type up some notes and quotes.
http://www.powells.com/biblio/62-1594863962-0

you know lakoff is going to try to take over the panel, every time someone mentions this book The Political Brain, he's going to fight for his own book sales. so while he devolves the panel into a theoretical discussion about cognition and the impermanence of memory or whatever the hell else has a fart's relation to the meat of the panel and the point -- actually winning elections and crushing conservatives... so my advice would be to quote the hell out of Bill Scher's book Wait! Don't Move to Canada: A Stay-And-Fight Strategy to Win Back America.

be the one who refuses to not be of practical assistance to the audience, nearly all of whom you should mention, when lakoff goes on his long sidebars, cares A LOT more about beating conservatives than they do about grasping the mysteries of the brain.

the conversation should be about how to beat conservatives. not about cognitive linguistics.

I may stop by DL on Thursday to borrow yours

Submitted by Michael Connery on Tue, 2007-07-24 16:50.

I may stop by DL Thursday to borrow your copy, if I can.

This basically summed up my approach:

the conversation should be about how to beat conservatives. not about cognitive linguistics.

But my experience with this comes from the non profit side, where everyone thinks Lakoff is "neat" but useless in any real sense. The key for me will be figuring out how to pivot into that off of the panel topic - framing from the top (ie the White House). Maybe Bill's book is the way to do it.

talk about the "real" framing...

Submitted by Alex UA on Tue, 2007-07-24 17:15.

Not only is Lakoff's brand of pop-psych annoying, but it also completely ignores the majority of psychological research on framing, which has nothing to do with whether your dad hugged or spanked you when you were a kid. Instead, it has to do with what items that are deemed important enough to report and/or debate, what parameters are used to define the debate (which seems to be closer to the pop meaning Lakoff has helped usher in), and how the process is manipulated (and more...)

Then again, I got in some pretty nasty arguments with Jeffrey over his concepts (as if any argument I get in isn't nasty), so maybe don't bring it up... ;-)

This Wikipedia entry on the Agenda-Setting Effect, which framing is part of, gives a good definition of the social scientific use of the term:

Framing is a process of selective control over media content or public communication. Framing defines how a certain piece of media content is packaged so it will influence particular interpretations. This is accomplished through the use of selection, emphasis, exclusion, and elaboration

Get with the times, Grandpa!

Submitted by jpb on Tue, 2007-07-24 10:37.

Oooh--sorry, Mike, but I have to do this:

> Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah

No "and". These darn whippersnappers and their wacky band names...

argh . . . .

Submitted by Michael Connery on Tue, 2007-07-24 11:28.

Out of pure stubbornness, I'm going to always throw that "and" in there . . .

Also, seeing as LLpza is a decidely 90's affair that they brought back for the sake of nostalgia, and seeing as I actually went to Lollapalooza '94 as my first concert ever, the "grandpa" status is both earned and to be respected.

Giant?

Submitted by Rick Perlstein (not verified) on Tue, 2007-07-24 22:10.

I'm like 5' 5"!

Height Advantage

Submitted by Michael Connery on Tue, 2007-07-24 22:44.

Well, I've definitely got the height advantage. Hopefully you won't talk circles around me!

Look forward to meeting.

Woo!

Submitted by Josh Koenig on Wed, 2007-07-25 16:28.

I will see you there, homie, and I won't even heckle.

yar I bought my ticket as well

Submitted by MarkRistaino on Thu, 2007-07-26 13:38.

though I have to admit, lollapalooza played a part in my decision. As well as the evening of beer drinking mike described so well.