Getting the Snapchat generation to the polls
If Millennials thought 2016 election hinged on them, it would open doors
I’m a Gen-Xer, so I know apathy when I see it. That’s part of what inspired a program I’m working on at the USA TODAY NETWORK called One Nation. Let me explain: If Millennials, the oft-cited and much-measured generation born between 1981 and 1997, go to the polls in November, they would be the largest voting bloc in the country. Yes, this means the Snapchat generation could steer our collective future. But will Millennials — often maligned as “narcissistic,” “coddled” and “entitled” — vote? And do they realize their power?
In a joint USA TODAY/Rock the Vote poll conducted in January, two-thirds of Millennials polled said voting was a responsibility and would encourage their friends and family to vote. But only half agreed their vote could change the outcome of the election.
Based on those results, I’m going to go ahead and assume that they don’t actually realize their power. So with that in mind, we hatched One Nation’s organizing principles: Millennials need to connect with our boring old civics model by recognizing their individual-to-group power (hence the program’s “I am one of One” tagline) and, to get them in the door, we needed to amp up the fun factor.
Millennials aren’t easily swayed by party platforms or particular candidates. Their motivation is inspired by specific issues — top among them gun safety legislation and renewable energy, which affect them personally. Or, to put it a different way: “What’s in it for me?”
One Nation takes a different approach. Rather than connect our audience with candidates, we seek to draw a direct line between the issues that matter to Millennials and how their seemingly insignificant vote becomes powerful when you start adding up all of these separate “special snowflakes” into a Snowzilla-like storm of social change.
I’ve been working on this project, with a cast of seemingly thousands across USA TODAY and 92 local network newspapers, for the past year. The idea is a simple progression: 1. Engage Millennials around election issues, 2. Give them the knowledge (read: power) they need to make informed decisions, 3. Get them registered to vote.
One Nation kicked off in Des Moines two weeks ahead of the Iowa caucuses with an event all about energy. The main attrac- tion was a panel of energy experts who were able to put aside policy wonky jibber-jabber to truly communicate what our energy future could look like five or 10 years from now depending on which path we take as a country.
Next week, One Nation is setting up shop in Reno, where, along with The Reno Gazette-Journal, we’ll take over Cargo Concert Hall on Thursday to talk about health care issues. Then, it’s on to Phoenix in March to talk immigration and to Palm Springs (during the Millennial-heavy Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival week) to concentrate on climate change. The full tour schedule is on our site at onenation.usatoday.com.