MTV's Choose or Lose Campaign to Air Youth Targeted Political Coverage Across Platforms

MTV's Choose or Lose Campaign to Air Youth Targeted Political Coverage Across Platforms

Obama Answers Young American's Questions on 30-Minute MTV "Ask Obama" Special Debuting on Monday, November 3rd at 9am ET

Voices Converge on Real-Time, Interactive "Youth Voice Map" and MTV News and Street Team Reporters Cover Youth Vote Across the Country

NEW YORK, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- With more than 25 million young voters expected to cast their ballots leading up to and on Election Day, MTV's Choose or Lose campaign continues to bring youth-targeted political coverage to viewers. MTV today announced that pre-Election Day it will conduct an exclusive interview and air a thirty-minute special with Senator Barack Obama, asking him questions submitted by viewers. This interview opportunity was also extended to Senator McCain, who declined to participate. On Election Day and the day after, MTV will harness multiple platforms to bring Choose or Lose to viewers online, on-air and on mobile, with program elements including an interactive, real-time Choose or Lose "Youth Voice Map" online; news hits airing on MTV, MTV2, mtvU, and MTV Tr3s from New York, Chicago and Phoenix; and Street Team '08 news from each state, with live mobile-to-web reports from 15 battleground states.

"We're about to enter a new era for America, and young people have already demonstrated that they are poised to be at the forefront of this movement. More than 82% of youth view this election as the single most important in recent history," said Ian Rowe, Senior Vice President of Public Affairs. "Record youth turnout in the 2004 Presidential Election, the 2006 Congressional Midterm Elections, the 2008 Presidential Primaries, and even in early voting states all indicate that young people are on the verge of a massive turnout that could be the deciding factor in this election. MTV is going all out to capture this historic moment."

   MTV's Choose or Lose political coverage will include the following:    --  "Ask Obama" -- MTV will broadcast a thirty-minute special with Senator       Barack Obama answering questions from America's youth.  MTV is taking       questions from young people via video or written submissions at       http://yourhere.mtv.com/.  The special will premiere on Monday,       November 3rd on MTV at 9:00 am ET and will subsequently air on MTV at       7:00 pm ET, MTV Tr3s at 11:00 am ET and 6:30 pm ET, and on mtvU, MTV's       24-hour college network, and MTV2.   --  Interactive Choose or Lose "Youth Voice Map" -- Youth voices from       across the country will converge on November 4th and 5th on       ChooseorLose.com, MTV.com and MTVNews.com with a real-time       TwitterVision map of the United States.  The map will feature a       running display of election-related content including Twitter messages       from young people, SMS messages from viewers, messages from the 51       Choose or Lose Street Team citizen journalists, video Blog posts from       Street Team members and MTV News correspondents, and MTV News stories.   --  MTV News -- On November 4 and 5, MTV News will have teams on the       ground in New York, Chicago, and Phoenix reporting on Election Day.        These teams will be following the campaigns, talking with young       people, and highlighting issues as they occur.  MTV News       Correspondents Sway will be in Chicago, Kim Stolz will be in Phoenix,       and John Norris will be at the CNN GRILL in New York.   --  Choose or Lose Street Team 08 -- Throughout the day, MTV/Knight Street       Team 08 reporters for 15 battleground states will broadcast live       mobile-to-web coverage of the day.  People can head to       www.ChooseorLose.com to get updates on what's going on in those key       states as well as get live reports should any issues arise during the       day.  All Street Team 08 reporters will post in-depth videos, blogs,       and Twitter updates to keep our audience updated on what young people       are doing on Election Day across the country.  When the election is       called, the Street Team will be on the ground sharing reactions as       they come in from youth viewing parties in every state.   --  Street Teamers on AP's "Big Issue: Election Results" -- Two MTV Choose       or Lose citizen journalists will take part in the first-ever       Associated Press live streaming online continuous video stream, "Big       Issue: Election Results."  Both will report their experiences from       being on the ground, covering the youth vote throughout the year.  The       webcast will be available to some 2,000 Web sites of newspapers,       broadcasters and other AP customers throughout the U.S. beginning at 7       pm ET on AP's Online Video Network at http://www.ap.org/.   --  Total Request Live (TRL) -- MTV News will be featured in 4 segments       during the show including live reports from Chicago and Phoenix to       update MTV viewers on what's going on at campaign headquarters that       day.   --  MTV Virtual World Pre-Election Buzz Party -- On Monday, November 3rd,       fans in the MTV Virtual World can log on and chat with leading musical       artists and MTV celebrities about the 2008 Presidential Election.    

Over the course of the campaign, other elements of "Choose or Lose '08" have included the pioneering MTV / MySpace Presidential Dialogue Series, which featured Senators McCain, Clinton, Obama, Edwards, Governor Huckabee and Representative Paul taking unfiltered questions -- in person and online, in real time - from youth nationwide; "Choose or Lose Presents Clinton & Obama Answer Young Veterans"; and MTV/Knight "Street Team '08," 51 specially-recruited citizen journalists, one in each state and Washington, D.C., covering the 2008 elections from a youth perspective.

On July 4th Choose or Lose presented exclusive 60-second video messages on MTV2 from presumptive Presidential candidates, republican Senator John McCain and Democratic Senator Barack Obama. These messages paid tribute to the young men and women who have served in the nation's armed forces. On July 28th, MTV News and Kanye West teamed up to tell the stories of returning veterans in the powerful documentary "Choose or Lose & Kanye West Present: Homecoming (http://think.mtv.com/Campaigns/Homecoming). In this one hour special, Kanye West, along with MTV's Sway Calloway, gave recently returned Iraq war veterans the surprise of their lives by unexpectedly visiting their homes. And, on October 24th, MTV and CNN teamed up to host a cross-network television event that included a concert, "A Night for Vets: MTV Honors the BRAVE" to mobilize support for our country's newest generation of young veterans and news programming on both channels highlighting young veterans' stories of triumph, as well as issues facing veterans as they return from battle. MTV also announced the Bill of Rights for American Veterans (BRAVE), a petition created in partnership with a group of top non-partisan veterans' organizations calling on elected officials to support veterans' issues and swiftly enact positive legislative changes. American's can sign the petition by texting BRAVE to 66333 or by logging on to http://www.chooseorlose.com/.

"Choose or Lose '08" (http://www.chooseorlose.com/) is MTV's Emmy Award-winning campaign to engage, inform and empower young voters on the political issues that matter to them most. First launched in 1992, the campaign has helped fuel several of the largest youth voter turnouts in US history, including in 2004, when it helped inspire nearly 22 million 18-30 year olds to register and vote. All "Choose or Lose" content - plus more information on the candidates, issues, registering to vote and a spirited debate - can be found on http://www.chooseorlose.com/.

About MTV

MTV is the dynamic, vibrant experiment at the intersection of music, creativity and youth culture. For over 26 years, MTV has evolved, challenged the norm, and detonated boundaries -- giving each new generation a creative outlet and voice that entertains, informs and unites on every platform and screen. On-air, MTV has been the number one rated 24 hour ad-supported cable network P12-24 for 16 straight years. Online, MTV.com scored double-digit growth in 2007 and MTV launched 15 dynamic online communities and eight new virtual worlds. On the go, MTV Mobile is the #1 music brand in the wireless space - delivering 90% more streams than in 2006. And MTV's successful sibling networks MTV2, mtvU and MTV Tr3s each deliver unprecedented customized content, super-serving music fans, college students and young American Latinos like no one else. MTV is part of MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE: VIA.B) , one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. Wanna know more? Come on in... http://www.mtvpress.com/.

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Source: MTV

CONTACT: Janice Gatti of MTV Communications, +1-212-846-8852,
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Web Site: http://think.mtv.com/Campaigns/Homecoming
http://think.mtv.com/Issues/politics

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Profile: International Entertainment