State-by-State Election Directory Debuts
on Web White & Blue 2000

Directory Highlights Official State Election Web Sites, Voter Guides, Campaign Fincance Data, And Other Voter Resources

WASHINGTON, DC -- September 18, 2000 - Web White & Blue 2000, a non-profit, non-partisan project of the Markle Foundation designed to highlight the ways in which the Internet can expand and enhance citizen participation in our nation's democratic process, today added a State-By-State Directory of Election Information as a new feature of the project, available online at:

www.webwhiteblue.org/directory

The directory provides links to voter information resources offered by state election agencies and currently features information for 26 states, with new states being added every day. "Many state election agencies now offer a wide array of reliable and helpful voter information on the Internet. This directory helps publicize these valuable resources," said Barbara Fedida, director of Web White & Blue 2000.

Web White & Blue 2000 is an unprecedented collaboration of 17 of the largest Internet traffic centers and news outlets, including AOL, MSNBC and Yahoo!, who have come together in order to provide voters with a comprehensive view of the best online political information resources. The Web White & Blue 2000 network reaches more than 85 percent of the American Internet audience.

Each state page of the directory links directly to the official state election Web site, voter guide, campaign finance data and election returns. The directory also highlights state-level voter guides from nonprofit, nonpartisan organizations and includes a "ballot round-up" summarizing the number of races and measures underway in each state.

"The state-by-state directory helps voters across the country quickly locate and access the most reliable and trustworthy resources available online," said Kim Alexander, president of the nonprofit California Voter Foundation, which is producing the directory for Web White & Blue 2000. "An increasing number of states are offering links to official campaign Web sites and timely online disclosure of campaign finance data, helping busy voters learn more about their choices and prepare to make informed decisions on Election Day."

ABOUT WEB WHITE & BLUE 2000

Web White & Blue 2000 is designed to highlight the positive role of the Internet in our nation's democratic process. Each weekday, Web White & Blue 2000 provides links to the "Best of the Best" political content online, links to a Featured Nonprofit voter information resource, and an Interactive Events Calendar providing up-to-date listings of online political discussions. This shared content from Web White & Blue 2000 will be available at each of the Charter Participants' sites.

The centerpiece of Web White & Blue 2000 is a unique Internet event: A Rolling Cyber Debate among the presidential campaigns. Beginning on October 1 and continuing through Election Day, Web White & Blue 2000 will host a daily online exchange among the presidential campaigns. The debate will be carried at www.webwhiteblue.org and simultaneously on the 17 Web White & Blue 2000 Charter sites, including: ABCNews.com, America Online, CNN.com, allpolitics.com, Excite@Home, FoxNews.com, iVillage.com, Microsoft/MSN, MSNBC.com, MTV.com, NetNoir, npr.org (National Public Radio Online), NYTimes.com, Oxygen Media, PBS Online, USAToday.com, Washingtonpost.com's OnPolitics, and Yahoo!.

The Markle Foundation (www.markle.org) works to realize the potential of information technology to improve people's lives and promotes the development of communications industries that address public needs. The California Voter Foundation (www.calvoter.org) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization advancing new technologies to improve democracy. More information about the Web White & Blue 2000 project is available at http://www.webwhiteblue.org.

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This page was first published on September 18, 2000 | Last updated on September 19, 2000
copyright 1994 - 2000, California Voter Foundation. All rights reserved.