50 percent of people under 30 did not vote at the election in 2009. Several newspapers now come together to help mobilize young voters.
During this year's election campaign, Aftenposten's goal is to help mobilize young people to exercise their right to vote.
The campaign Min Stemme ("My Vote") is organized by several newspapers and media companies in Norway, including Tønsberg Blad, Fædrelandsvennen, Stavanger Aftenblad, Bergens Tidende and Adresseavisen to mention some. It will also be run together with a similar campaign organized by NRK.
"The media has a special kind of responsbility, and we play an important role in our democracy. We cannot simply sit and watch young voters who do not exercise their right to vote, says news editor Ole Erik Almlid, who presented the campaign to the Norwegian Association for Editors on Tuesday.
The campaign kicks off on August 12, and will consist of a common PR campaign, a social media launch as well as a campaign app for smartphones. However, Almlid emphasizes that the journalism itself is what is meant to make the big difference.
Guro Ødegaard, a researcher at the Center for Social Research (ISF) thinks the campaign could be effective in mobilizing young people to vote. But even more important, she says, the campaign could help make politicians become more conscious of young voters if journalists set a political agenda that appeals to young voters.
(Aftenposten)
