In wanting to deliver a megaphone to the American public at large, JESS3 explored ways to incorporate the use of social media and the web to empower Americans in civic engagement and participation, cherished freedoms of our country's republic. Additionally, we looked at how to increase communication in an ever-growing globalized world, specifically how we can digitally connect Americans on the home front to soldiers on the front line. We explored two distinct projects, both using Twitter as the foundation for communication: 1. Traditionally, interaction with the White House Press Secretary has been an experience limited to only credentialed members of the media. But in the rising era of citizen journalism and where the lines between media and the public are becoming increasingly blurred, what would it look like to provide a direct line of communication from John and Jane Doe to President Obama's public spokesperson in a digital age? 2. Though we may divided by oceans and miles from our brave troops, we have been sending our soldiers care packages, letters and thank you cards almost since the beginning of time. In thinking how to best leverage the web to deliver messages of gratitude and momentos from home with even greater speed and quality, we developed some concepts that ranged from Tweets, video messaging and photo sharing.
