Hello this is Carl Brown With MTV’s Street team ’08 today I am in Oakland California reporting live from my home studio. After 44 weeks of historic coverage MTV’s Street Team “08 has come to a end. All year each street team reporter has been producing written and video stories about social and political issues that are important to young people in their state. Armed with video cameras and laptops we covered stories and individuals far from the spotlight of mainstream media.

My first story was about the manufacture of Biodiesel from recycled waste oil. One of the issues that young people mentioned again and again was the need to develop alternative forms of renewable energy.

Covering stories about communities usually passed over by traditional media. Young people told me that not only do they need new energy but also they need new jobs. I produced a story on the Ella Baker Center a non-profit right here in Oakland addressing both with their Green Jobs Campaign.

With one of the world’s largest economies and the promise of freedom to pursue individual dreams, California is home to one the nations largest immigrant populations. I produced a story about Yosimar Reyes, an immigrant, poet and activist that teaches young people in San Jose to think critically about immigration.

I found young people all over California who, weather fighting for immigrant rights, renewable energy or the protection of our environment believed that their voice could make a difference. Marty Benson is a 25-year-old lawyer, surfer and environmental activists who have been working tirelessly with thousands of other youth to protect one of Southern California’s last remaining pristine beaches.

With the growing revolution in digital technology and the proliferation of consumer produced media I found young people all over California using media to tell their own stories and discuss issues that are important to them.

Media has become an inseparable part of the way that we communicate and organize. From the primaries to the general election we saw how millions of Young Americans used media to participate in the democratic process. Although our nation faces severe environmental, social and economic challenges, it is through this participation that the American people have demonstrated that we are a nation that still values Equality, Freedom and the Ability to choose great leaders.

 In California, this is Carl D. Brown signing off for MTV’s Street Team ’08.