Health care reform campaign launches a video contest

The health care reform conversation is everywhere these days. No matter what side of the fence you sit, it's hard not to get in the discussion. I sat down and read the Sunday paper this morning, which is the only day anymore I even look at a printed edition, and the topic dominated both the national and local headlines.

Well now the Democratic National Committee (DNC) has taken the issue the same way many brands have promoted their products and has launched a user-generated video contest. Organizing for America's Health Reform Video Challenge is inviting Americans to make a 30-second ad telling the story about why the status quo has got to go and explaining how the Obama plan will ensure we get the secure, quality care we need without breaking the budget.

Since the DNC has me down in their database as a Democrat along with my email address I've been getting many emails on this issue, which is how I became aware of this contest. The email message says  "We know that compelling videos can touch people in a way that words alone simply cannot. The messages that regular people put together will make a bigger difference than any false smears or slick ads the other side can dream up. And who knows -- your creative, powerful, or touching video could help tip the balance in favor of health reform."

So here's the deal. Participants must upload their video to YouTube and then enter the public URL for their video in the online submission form found here on my.barackobama.com by October 18.  A panel of judges from DNC will review all the entries and select the top 20 that best meet the contest criteria. They will be looking for 30-second videos that are creative, original and interesting and those that demonstrate both impact and that have a clarity of message concerning supporting health care reform. These 20 videos will then be posted online and eligible to be voted on by the general public along with a panel of experts. Voting will begin about October 27th and continue to November 3rd.

The DNC will then tally up the scores from both the public votes and the expert panel and then combine them to come up with an overall score that is comprised of 40% from how the public voted and the other 60% from the expert panel. The winning video should be announced on November 9th. All or part of the winner's video may then be used in a television ad associated with the DNC's health reform campaign.

So it'll be interesting to see how many entries are received. The great thing about how they've structured this contest is that by uploading the videos to YouTube it will easy enable sharing by posting links on social networks, blogs and on Twitter. We could end up with the majority of videos from the contests viewed on social media platforms versus television. Maybe a few of them will end up being the next viral video hits. So I'll have to do a recap of this contest once it over. Stay tuned.