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INDIANAPOLIS, May 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A unique collaboration between Indiana Town Halls, WFYI public television and the non-partisan, non-profit Informing to Empower today announced that Indiana's first-ever virtual congressional primary Town Hall is now viewable on the innovative new Candidates Video Debate platform.
"Our focus--the suburban Indianapolis 5th District--is a purple district with no incumbent and is the first competitive Indiana congressional race in decades," stated Les Zwirn, the citizen activist founder of Indiana Town Halls.
The innovative Candidates Video Debate for the Republican and Democratic primaries of the battleground Indiana's 5th congressional district launches today as part of a new collaboration between Indiana Town Halls and the new non-profit Informing to Empower. The groundbreaking new platform features an easy to use and share minute-long video interface to help voters make better informed decisions.
With congressional debates going virtual for the first time in this pandemic era, the Candidates Video Debate for the June 2 Indiana primary election allows candidates and voters to quickly and easily learn candidates' positions on specific issues.
Zwirn added, "We thank Informing to Empower Media for including our virtual Town Hall forums on its innovative web platform. Its technology allows candidates and voters to quickly and easily learn and share candidates' positions on specific issues."
The ultra-accessible format breaks political debates into minute-long videos of every candidate answering every question asked of them and presents these in a simple format for easy access and comparison. The 14-candidate 5th District Republican debate for the June 2 primary is available here; the 4-candidate Democratic primary here.
"Our goal is to bring transparency, accountability and integrity to the political process," said Informing to Empower founder Jonathan Greenberg, a new media pioneer whose Web 1.0 company, Gist.com, won the First Annual Webby Award in 1997. "This is what the future of a thriving democracy looks like. By helping voters make better informed decisions we can reduce the role of money in politics--a goal that a large majority of Americans share."
Democrat State Representative Ed DeLaney, an Indiana Town Hall founder, applauded the Informing to Empower web platform because "it provides a comfortable forum for candidates to engage in constructive dialogue with voters, thus avoiding the disruptions of Tea Party-era town halls and the contentiousness of conventional, pundit-moderated debates."
Republican State Senator John Ruckelshaus, another Indiana Town Hall founder, stressed that "these forums are win-win for citizens and candidates alike. They provide a safe way for reluctant candidates and office-holders to interact with voters, especially during the COVID closures and disruptions to candidate campaigns."
Jim Shella, veteran political reporter and the fourth Indiana Town Halls founder, added that "now is the right time for our moderated, informative Town Hall model. The public is hungry for thoughtful discussion of issues and civil exchanges with politicians."