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Capital B informs Black communities of candidates

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Black Political Power Tour

As election season continues, voters are attending different seminars, rallies, and meetings involving different candidates at all levels to hear what they stand for and what issues they're aiming to solve if elected. But many voters don't participate for several reasons, with most falling under the categories of not believing their vote makes a difference, being convicted of felonies, and not being educated on the different positions in local and federal governments and how people in those positions affect their everyday lives. Capital B is going on tour to help people in battle states understand the importance of their vote and hopes to educate others as they proceed into the voting process and pick candidates that will affect their future. 

Capital B is a local-national nonprofit news organization that centers on Black voices, and audience needs, and partners with the communities they serve. "Capital B was created two years ago, but the idea of this organization was created way before that as founders Lauren Williams and Akoto Ofori-Atta thought of many ways to help the Black community throughout the years, and it wasn't until George Floyd's death that brought the foundation and goal together." Gillian White, senior vice president of programming for the organization, said as she talked about the origins of Capital B. "Our focus is on providing the Black community with service, accountability, and hard news that is for them and fills in the gaps left by major news outlets." 

Capital B Atlanta and Capital B Gary are the only two in a growing network of local newsrooms anchored by Capital B’s national hub. Their local newsrooms publish need-to-know information — such as how to find affordable housing, apply for benefits, and vote — civic journalism and accountability reporting. They aim to be an antidote to the misinformation, disinformation, and low-quality, low-context news that clouds Black information pipelines. Capital B offers clear, accessible reporting on local and national levels tailored to the needs of their audience.

Another way they are doing this is by hosting their  Black Political Power Tour, a cross-country tour that aims to amplify Black voters in key battleground states ahead of the elections this fall. " A lot of people in battleground states only know or vote on the presidential election ballot and rarely look into the other seats that are available that will have an actual impact on their everyday life, and that's the purpose of the tour," White said as she discussed the importance of the tour. " We want people to go to ballots informed of what seats they are voting for, who the candidates are, and what issues they are trying to fix. Making this information available is of the utmost importance to us and to the communities we will serve."

The tour will happen in several cities and states, with the first stop being in Oakland. For location, dates, times, and tickets, you can visit www.capitalbnews.org/ Black Political Power Tour.

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