New York, NY (September 10, 2008) – As part of MTV’s ongoing Choose or Lose Emmy-Award winning campaign to engage, inform and empower young voters, Think MTV will stream a joint appearance of Presidential nominees John McCain and Barack Obama as they speak in the “ServiceNation Presidential Candidates Forum” on the evening of September 11 at 8:00 pm ET on http://www.chooseorlose.com. The forum, organized by ServiceNation (http://www.servicenation.org) and hosted by Columbia University in New York City, will feature the candidates separately discussing their views on the meaning and importance of service and civic engagement. 

 

“Think MTV is part of an ongoing effort to mobilize America’s youth to take action to make a positive impact on their lives and the lives of others, whether it’s through community service or by becoming informed and casting a vote this November,” said Ian Rowe, Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships and Public Affairs, MTV. “By streaming ServiceNation’s forum online, we’re keeping our audience informed on the issues that matter most to them.”

 

Log on to ChooseorLose.com at 8:00 pm ET to watch the forum live. After the event, video of the ServiceNation Forum will be available on demand at www.chooseorlose.com, as well as on mobile devices via MTV Mobile.

 

Also, as part of MTV’s ongoing efforts to drive voter registration, be sure to check out details on the Ultimate College Bowl (http://think.mtv.com/044FDFFFF0002D79C000800992F6C/User/Blog/BlogPostDetail.aspx), a contest driven by MySpace, five of the leading voter registration and civic groups in the US, and MTV, that will award scholarships and a free concert with Death Cab for Cutie to the students and the school that registers the most students to vote. 

 

About Think.MTV.com
Think.MTV.com is the umbrella for MTV’s on-air, off-air and online pro-social campaigns that engage, educate and encourage young people to take action on some of the biggest challenges facing their generation.  The backbone for MTV’s pro-social efforts is Think.MTV.com, an online community where young people, their friends and some of the biggest names in pop culture come together to effect positive social change.  The Think Community is dynamic, multimedia-driven and enables youth to easily learn more about the issues that matter to them most, share their opinions – via uploaded online videos, podcasts and blogs – and connect with others to make a difference.  The site is one of the only to reward members for positive actions taken online or off, serving up chances to hang out with socially conscious celebs, access to exclusive MTV events, exposure on MTV and other national media outlets, as well as grants, scholarships and more.  Think.MTV.com was founded in partnership with The Case Foundation, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The Goldhirsh Foundation and The MCJ Amelior Foundation.  For more information or to build a profile and become involved, visit Think.MTV.com.

 

“Choose or Lose ’08” (http://www.ChooseorLose.com) is MTV’s Emmy-Award winning campaign to engage, inform and empower young voters on the political issues that matter to them most.  First launched in 1992, the campaign has helped fuel several of the largest youth voter turnouts in US history, including in 2004, when it helped inspire nearly 22 million 18-30 year olds to register and vote.  Other elements of “Choose or Lose ‘08” include the pioneering MTV / MySpace Presidential Dialogue Series, which has featured Senators McCain, Clinton, Obama, Edwards, Governor Huckabee and Representative Paul taking unfiltered questions – in person and online, in real time – from youth nationwide; “Choose or Lose Presents Clinton & Obama Answer Young Veterans”; and MTV “Street Team ’08,” 51 specially-recruited citizen journalists, one in each state and Washington, D.C., covering the 2008 elections from a youth perspective.  “Street Team” members file weekly multi-media reports, tailor their coverage for mobile devices and focus on the political issues that most impact young people in their respective states.  On July 4th Choose or Lose presented exclusive 60-second video messages on MTV2 from presumptive Presidential candidates, republican Senator John McCain and Democratic Senator Barack Obama.  These messages paid tribute to the young men and women who have served in the nation’s armed forces.  All “Choose or Lose” content – plus more information on the candidates, issues, registering to vote and a spirited debate – can be found on http://www.ChooseorLose.com.

 

MTV is the dynamic, vibrant experiment at the intersection of music, creativity and youth culture.  For over 26 years, MTV has evolved, challenged the norm, and detonated boundaries—giving each new generation a creative outlet and voice that entertains, informs and unites on every platform and screen.  On-air, MTV has been the number one rated 24 hour ad-supported cable network P12-24 for 16 straight years.  Online, MTV.com scored double-digit growth in 2007 and MTV launched 15 dynamic online communities and eight new virtual worlds.  On the go, MTV Mobile is the #1 music brand in the wireless space – delivering 90% more streams than in 2006.  And MTV’s successful sibling networks MTV2, mtvU and MTV Tr3s each deliver unprecedented customized content, super-serving music fans, college students and young American Latinos like no one else.  MTV is part of MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms.  Wanna know more?  Come on in… http://www.mtvpress.com.  

 

ServiceNation (http://servicenation.org), is a dynamic new coalition of 110 organizations that has a collective reach of some 100 million Americans and is dedicated to strengthening our democracy and solving problems through civic engagement and service.