Recruiting for OffTheBus Special Ops

It's the electoral race of the century. Political maps are being redrawn, and rules are getting rewritten across the board. Fundraising records have been broken. The candidates are even comparing the size of their email lists.

The mainstream media is tripping over itself to report on every last press release and campaign announcement. But do any of us REALLY know what's going on?

With your help from the frontlines, HuffPost's OffTheBus can change campaign coverage.

CAN YOU HELP US? Join OffTheBus' Special Ops team, and report back to us on what's happening in your town and state.

No traditional media organization can afford to dispatch reporters all over the country, and certainly not this "early" in the general election. But that's exactly what HuffPost's OffTheBus, with 2500 members, can do.

Monday Sen. McCain opened a campaign office in St. Paul, Minnesota. Tuesday Sen. Obama set up shop in Orlando, Florida. Friday McCain and the GOP will cut the ribbons on their new HQ in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. By next week scores of new volunteers and campaign staffers will be crawling all over the battleground states in search of votes.

We've got a real competitive advantage over traditional media, but that may not last long.

As an OffTheBus Special Ops recruit you'll receive a reporting assignment each week. We'll equip you with special reporting guidelines for each assignment.

The information you relay to us -- contact information for local grassroots leaders, event locations and details, and more -- will be stored in our database, and then made available as a resource to our members and writers.

Last October OffTheBus members dropped in on Sen. Barack Obama's Nationwide Canvassing Day from more than two dozen locations. Hours later every observer independently relayed to us that the economy, not the war, was THE voting issue. Twenty-four hours later we reported on the significance of the economy, beating the mainstream media to the punch by several weeks ("Reporting the Obama Campaign Coast-to-Coast: Democrats More Undecided Than Polls Suggest").

As our numbers grow, the same collaborative reporting model that got us the scoop on the economy may tell us a lot more about what's happening nationwide.

Join the team, and get your first assignment!

Comments

[Chuckwheat]

I want a press badge giving me full buffet priviledges for the schmooze fests.

[BufordTvoter]

And when we report to you and it's filtered through your system will you only pick the news that helps Obama? Will it suffer the same kind of filter system that your comment boards use, the one that didn't post my comment when I criticized an essay?

If I contribute pro Nader info will it be suppressed?

The internet is already doing what you propose, minus the last filter.

[edwarvir]

BufordTvoter you can have the job on one condition . Repeat after me
BARACK OBAMA IS THE MAN. THAT IS WHAT YOU MUST WRITE
That is what you must think. Because BARACK OBAMA IS THE MAN

[QD]

I'm all for an informed citizenry but I fail to see why it mattered if Huff Po beats the MSM in realizing that the economy would be the biggest issue in this campaign.
1. Isn't that pretty obvious when you consider which way the economy is headed?
2. You can't separate economic issue from Iraq war issues because we all know that's where our money is going.

With all the thousands of forums and blogs out there anybody can be a citizen reporter and most people are. What is the advantage of having people's observations filtered through HuffPo?

I'm not trying to be snarky I'm honestly trying to understand why I should sign up for this. I would like to hear from other OTB members about why they do it. Just giving Huffpo a scoop on a self-evident campaign issue doesn't do it for me.

[RobinSeattle]

What's with that logo? It's like Arianna is starting her own motorcycle club *lol

[strifeknot]

I hope you screen the applicants better so as to avoid anymore Mayhill Fowlers.

[GiannaX]

From your lips to God's ears!

[tenilla]

This is something I would love to do -- although I will never in this lifetime or the next be able
to write as will as Chip Collis.

I live in the middle of the Bible Belt and I would love to write a piece about reactions in my
mised wealthy Republican/trailer park neighborhood to my Obama 08 cap.

That being sad, I will not apply because I would never want my good name associated with
anything that has anything to do with Mayhill Fowler.

[tenilla]

"[M]ixed ... neighborhood," not "mised [sic]."

[vippy]

I thought we are already doing this via comments in this fine newspaper!

[texastornado]

ME....,ME......,ME....,PICK ME.....,

[RevSpaminator]

Anyone else notice an opening for cheap short-bus jokes? (Especially if I were one of the contributors.)

[johnnynyc]

Vigilante journalism at its finest.

[Bluedanube]

Yeah, the corporate media does such a good job now!

[conniedogs]

RobXdion--I hope you'll look into this.....I think you'd be a perfect choice.