I just wanted to issue a semi-public 'thank you' to the people at MTV Networks who have respected our (Street Team members) choice to speak out on how we've been treated.

In the last two days, I know several of us have received personal phone calls from Ian Rowe (Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Public Affairs for MTV), who was sincerely sorry for the way things turned out. I also received the money owed to me yesterday, and today had a UPS mailer slid under my door with another [undisclosed] amount of money...I think we struck a nerve.

...

As any followers of this blog may have heard, MTV is not paying us...or anyone for that matter. It's almost funny because last year when I was trying to decide weather to take this job, I was observing what was going on with freelance benefits and the WTF MTV shirts, and the ridicule of their huge million-dollar yearly holiday party at Hammerstein. You think it's an accident that we were continually paid late every month, every quarter, all year, and now are not even being considered to be paid until after the New Year...Merry Christmas to me! I wonder what the CFOs are up to...

Anyway, so I was writing some random thoughts down in the "About Me" Section of my profile and it turned into this....

I have a few new goals for my life right now...

1) Fiinish the script that I've been writing for years about my brother's and my family's story.


...

It's all over, and time to look back at the past year...

I just went to vote, and the experience was pretty intense. I had my Nick, my cameraman film me as I walked in and became part of what I thought was a long line/wait (it got way longer later). Immediately we were approached by the chairman of the polling place we were at, and told we weren't aloud to film, though I knew we were. He didn't believe us that we were media, so I sent Nick to get my credentials. Then I waited for good hour before I even got my ballot. Eventually we were aloud to film my voting experience, I did my things, and we made our way out to where the line was growing. All were college students from Iowa State University right across the street. Most looked bored, a few were excited, and none seemed to be turned away by the long line.

...

Yesterday I got an email from the Obama Campaign, addressed from Al Gore. I didn't even read it, but rather found it interesting that Gore waited until the day before the election to throw his support behind Obama. Instead I imagined the Democratic Part strategists all meeting together months ago and deciding when certain political heads should announce their support in order for it to be most effective. Likewise, it made me think of how few McCain really has had, especially when talking about powerful political heads.

...

In the weeks leading up to the election, two of my friends and I drove around the state to talk to young voters and get a sense of the political climate.

Part 1

Part 2

2.1 (Dinner Table Discussion)

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2.2 (Conversations on Facebook)

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2.5 (Our Own Debate)

Part 3

3.1 (Iowa Floods Revisited)

3.2 (Flobots in Iowa)

The third and final installment to my road trip series, in this part Nick, Andy and I hit Cedar Falls on the night of the final presidential debate, waste time in Independence, revisit the flood devestation in Cedar Rapids, and end the trip with a politically-charged concert in Des Moines.

Iowa Floods Revisited:

For more:

Iowa Floods 2008

Iowa Disaster Relief

Flobots in Iowa:

Also check out the Flobots non-profit social-networking site, FightWithTools.org

Part 2

As we continue our road trip that barely got us out of Ames in last week's story, we hit the Iowa Lakes, my home town, and many other areas, talking politics with people at skate parks along the way...yes, skate parks. What started as just a break for my friends Andy and Nick to get out and role around became a new theme for the road trip. Though skaters could be considered a demographic of their own, we heard a wide variety of political concerns.

Watch next week as we finish our road trip.

Our Own Debate (Iowa Road Trip 2.5)

After attending a viewing party in Cedar Falls for the last presidential debate, we decided to have a debate of our own...Three Obama supporters, Three McCain supporters, and me mediating.
 

These UNI students are passionate about their views and it shows as this debate gets a little heated.

Iowa Road Trip Pt. 1:

Voter Apathy / Angry Youth:

As I trek around the state on a road trip to talk with Iowa’s youth, I’m noticing an unfortunate trend of voter apathy. Maybe it’s the fact that campaigns started earlier than ever, maybe it’s the bump-up of caucuses and primaries all over the nation, but maybe [just maybe] it has something to do with the he said/she said political propaganda that consumes our network media…In most cases it’s all of the above, but regardless, it has much of our youth angry at the system.

Personally the whole process has me exhausted, and the thought that our next election cycle could start even earlier gives me the notion that this could be the start of a very nauseating trend.

What I’m hearing from our youth:

Monty Shaw of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association sits down with us to weigh out the different viewpoints we've heard thus far.