Purple States LLC is a video based media company that uses citizen journalists in professionally edited news content. Purple States combines the on-line movement towards user generated content (youtube.com, i-report.com) with the professional quality associated with traditional news and television media. Launched in 2007 with coverage of the primary elections, Purple States has produced video that ranges from orchestrated and edited video-blogs that appear on its own website, to filmed online series of five-minute segments that have appeared on NYTimes.com, washingtonpost.com, local television, CNN's iReport, and Verizon. The company says it is working on longer-form programming for national television.
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Founder
Purple States LLC was founded by Dr. Cynthia Farrar. Dr. Farrar's experience includes work with MacNeil/Lehrer Productions (2201-2008) (By the People project) and local public television, as well as teaching political theory and practice at Yale University (1996–2009) (Institution for Social and Policy Studies). She conceived of Purple States as a "synthesis of old media with the connectivity of the internet to make democracy accessible and engaging to large numbers of Americans." (Interviews at Beet.TV--"Primaries", "Election")
Where Purple States content can be found
Purple States videos have aired on The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN's iReport, Verizon V-Cast, and local news stations. Purple States is hosted by Blip TV and can be found on facebook as well as its YouTube site.
Season 1: "Primaries"
Five citizens selected for their diversity reported on the primaries leading up to Super Tuesday:
Season 2: “Election”
"Election" launched at the beginning of September 2008 and featured the same five citizen journalists from Season 1. Season 2 Focused on the nominees, and the citizen journalists reported on: job loss and economic insecurity; the post racial election; teachers and education; green energy; foreclosures effect on neighborhoods; and national security from a military perspective. The series was featured on washingtonpost.com.
50 States in 50 Days
Post election, 50 bloggers, one from each of the 50 states, were recruited by Purple States to submit video blogs that have been edited into conversation about the economic crisis facing the U.S. This video blog series launched the day after the presidential election and can be viewed on the Purple States website. These pieces appeared regularly on CNN's ireport. A composite of the bloggers' Advice to President Obama aired on the Washington Post and can also be viewed on iReport.