August 1, 2000

Alternative Convention Coverage

Tired of the feel-good mainstream coverage of politics-as-usual this convention season? Here’s our guide to alternative and independent sources of news and views of this year’s Democratic National Convention.

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Alternative News

Alternet
A one-stop shop for unconventional convention news, with links to stories from the best alternative news sources, including The Nation, Corporate Watch, the Philadelphia Weekly, Grist, and the Independent Media Center.

The Nation
Special breaking reports and analyses, as well as interactive features.

LA Weekly
THE alternative weekly of note in LA. They’ve been on this story longer than just about anyone. You want context? You got it.

LA Independent Media Center
The bad boys and girls of indy media are on the ground with the protesters, getting the stories behind the glam. Also a bulletin board of stories from eyewitnesses, updated throughout the day.

Democracy Now
Democracy Now has a great calendar of scheduled events outside the Staples Pavillion.

Free Speech TV
Video netcasts from the LA Independent Media Center.

National Radio Project
“UnConventional” analysis from voices you trust, including Andrei Codrescu, Norm Solomon, and Elizabeth Robinson.

News for Change
Working Assets’ newish alternative news channel offers audio feeds from the convention and assorted columns from the usual lefty suspects.

Tom Paine
Made in Alternet’s image but with more original content, Tom Paine dedicated its news muscle to the Shadow Conventions during the GOP gathering.

Activist Groups/Guides/Events

The Direct Action Network
Major organizers of the Los Angeles protests.

The D2K Network
A subset of the Direct Action Network, D2K is a loosely organized umbrella group of organizers and activists (known two weeks ago as R2K) who are taking to the streets of LA for the convention. The best spot to get updates on scheduled protests and organizing meetings.

Ruckus Society
Uber-organizers of the WTO and IMF protests in recent months, Ruckus is focusing on organizing protests for the Democratic Convention.

Shadow Conventions
Arianna Huffington’s brainchild is staging daily alt-convention speakers focussing on three main issues: the failed drug war, the broadening wealth gap, and campaign finance reform.

People’s Convention
The Left’s own progressive alternative to the Big Party shindig. Without the Huffington/Franken glamor factor.

LA Protestors’ Resource Guide
A somewhat comprehensive guide to planned events, marches, organizing meetings, and rallies scheduled for the Democratic Convention.

Billionaires for Bush (or Gore)
Parody site and group calls attention to the problem of campaign finance. The “Candidate Price/Performance Analysis” is priceless. They’re scheduled to hold another Million Billionaires March in LA.

Stop Bush 2000
No Bush fans, these. Good-looking site with anti-Bush art and downloadable fliers.

WE CAME UP SHORT.

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So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

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WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

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