When the Nobel Prize-winning Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation was looking to launch a special program, the Alliance of Security, to educate citizens about the dire implications of U.S. foreign policy as well as the history of Islam, they asked EchoDitto to provide and implement the internet component. We developed their entire online presence including building and maintaining a blog, This Is Rumor Control.
One of AFS's most immediate goals was to educate young men and women about the potential for the draft, given the growing concerns of military preparedness. We created on online "Draft Your Friends" campaign to raise awareness about the issue and recruit new members. After brokering a partnership with Rock the Vote to send the "draft card" to their list of 640,000 people, we saw our email list grow 4,000%. The "draft card" was featured in articles in The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Time Magazine. Thanks in large part to these "rumors on the internets," two of the three presidential debates included questions about the draft—an issue that had barely been addressed by the traditional media. Currently, we are creating a long-term community building plan for AFS that will include fundraising and issue organizing.