Today is a day we’ve been waiting for since our new BGA team accepted the challenge, 16 months ago, to strengthen this venerable anti-corruption civic watchdog organization.
Wednesday, October 6, is Day 1 of BGA Digital. Here’s what you can expect:
- A new platform for information, education and engagement: Our re-imagined website (www.bettergov.org) will present and archive all our investigations, videos, resources, research and civic engagement tools
- More stories, in more places: From The Shaw Blog to the Investigators’ Notebook and the Watchdog Wall, each unit of the BGA will actively engage with you.
- An ongoing conversation: Through Facebook, Twitter and other social media tools, we are creating a virtual town hall.
This is civic engagement: a 24-7 campaign to harness the power of the people in a robust campaign to change business as usual and the culture of corruption by keeping the heat on the public officials who treat our hard-earned tax dollars as personal piggy banks to reward friends, family members and political contributors. You will send us pictures of unfilled potholes, abandoned snow drifts, uncollected garbage, idle work sights, unfilled Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests — anything that relates to government not doing its job — and we will help you hold the responsible public officials accountable.
Our new website also highlights our Watchdog Training program, which provides regular citizens with basic tools to hold the local officials in their communities accountable. They will be our eyes and ears, and their tips and insights will be featured on our website as part of an ongoing conversation.
Another feature will be videos and discussions prompted by our BGA Town Hall meetings on important topics. We discussed term limits at a forum in August, and TIFs in September — upcoming idea forums may include a guide to FOIA, privatization, and streamlining government.
We deserve to have a government we can be proud of and public officials who spend our tax dollars wisely. The new BGA Digital will be a tireless advocate and a vigilant watchdog in an aggressive and civil campaign to give us just that. We hope you’ll visit us regularly and participate actively in this effort. Together we’ll be a force to be reckoned with.
