Causes to Celebrate: Popular Information

“A popular Government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy; or, perhaps both.” — James Madison

I love this particular quote which is the tagline and the first thing you see when you visit the About page of Popular Information.  It reminds us of the importance of getting, not just news, but actual information that helps us make informed decisions, rather than getting the story that a multi-billion dollar news conglomerate wants us to hear.  As Judd Legum, the author of Popular Information, says:

You are not a spectator and democracy is not a game. But so much of what is written about politics treats you that way. That’s why I created Popular Information. It is daily news and analysis that respects you as citizen. You won’t just learn about who is up and who is down. You’ll get in-depth information and perspective on the things that really matter.

I've been watching Judd's progress for a few years now, and it's telling that much of his reporting focusses on issues where there is a lot of hype, disinformation, or outright lying going on.  He holds businesses and politicians accountable for the things that they say and do, and his work has changed the way that those people and companies do business because of public outcry and public sentiment.  If I had to put a name to what he does, I'd say that he's a leading voice in technological activism.  And the best part about his work is that he's been in the trenches and knows how the business of politics works.  He served on a presidential campaign and even ran for office in his own state.  So while many of us have never done more than host a party or two, he's seen from the inside how stories are told about the people that are running our government, and he knows how the money flows.

One of his most recent successes came after the January 6th failed coup attempt where he began pointing out companies that supported candidates who themselves supported the actions of the protestors that day.  And when those companies were called out on their support, they started pulling back their donations.  It cost the Republican Party a lot of money, and while those donations are slowly but surely returning now that the public and national news cycle has moved on from the incident, Popular Information continues to watch that money flow.

This is a really important thing, too, as money is a big part of politics these days, sadly.  Instead of local issues and small-town priorities, our local, state, and national governments are riddled with monetary donations to campaigns in return for candidate cooperation once they've won office for issues that those donors believe to be important.  It's a sad truth that is part of our current democratic process, and one that I'd love to see changed, but it's better by far than an autocratic dictatorship where there's no transparency at all in the process.  At least this way we can, more or less, see where the money is coming from and make choices based on what we believe is good.  (Part of the PAC process is to help hide the names of  individual corporate donors, which is problematic as far as I'm concerned.  If you're giving money to someone, you're endorsing their policies; and if you're not willing to admit to that, then maybe there's a problematic reason for it.)

What I also like about Popular Information is that it isn't driven by news cycles, but rather by data, something that in recent years is an amazing tool for helping people to become more aware of what's going on in the world around them.  This data-driven approach is something that I believe is important; it helps us to find trends and see where the words don't match the actions.  And that's something that is integral to growth--both on a personal level, but also on a national and global perspective, as well.  We need to know when we're making mistakes so that we can change.

And it is that hope for change, that belief that data and accountability are information worth sharing, that makes Popular Information a cause worth celebrating.