Open to all Columbians
Join the Tamer Center for a Spark Workshop with Vngle – Grassroots News for Transparency.
Vngle is a grassroots news organization founded to make cities more transparent and accurately represented via “various angles” of on-the-ground news coverage. It serves as a comprehensive outlet for credible hyper-local information regarding different cultures within and across cities.
This concept was born from a voter registration trip to Ferguson, Missouri. In going door-to-door, Blake, founder and CEO of Vngle, began asking locals of Ferguson what it was like to live in the city. He found many of their experiences shockingly divergent from televised and written news reports. Their stories revealed that the dismal conditions of the city had deeper roots than those to which the broader public had been exposed. Wondering why so many of these stories had gone unheard and if other local communities across America were equally underrepresented, Blake was motivated to do something about it by creating Vngle.
The key problems of today’s news sources are lack of representation and lack of transparency. Between the scope of local news today and the silos of social media, it remains a challenge to get different perspectives on what is actually happening across communities. Thus, local matters go underrepresented or not represented at all.
Leading up to the 2020 U.S. presidential election in November, Vngle seeks to highlight underrepresented perspectives and insights on major issues in each of the swing states. Vngle is interested in ideas on which issues to cover, which cities to focus on and the methods to achieve a diversity of voices. More accurate and representative information allows for better informed voters!
This workshop will be an opportunity to collaborate and ideate on issues to cover, ways to gain accurate information, and methods to provide that information to the public. Bring your experience, expertise, and curiosity!
SPEAKER BIOGRAPHY
Blake Stoner, Founder and CEO of Vngle, is a storyteller, social entrepreneur, and tech enthusiast. With a history of community engagement since his childhood, Stoner uses his background as a basis to represent the culture and concerns of communities. Blake enjoys connecting with passionate people, cool opportunities, and general avenues to explore new terrain around culture in America. He earned a BA in Economics from Morehouse College and an MS in Strategic Communication from Columbia University. For his social initiatives, he has been the recipient of various entrepreneurial awards and grants. Blake currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia.