Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
“People who work together will win, whether it be against complex football defenses or the problems of modern society.” ~ Vince Lombardi
Way back in the early 1800s, long before Iowa became a state and before the nation turned its eyes to the first-in-the-nation caucuses, Iowans understood the value of a single voice in a crowded room as well as the miracles that can evolve from a group of citizens working toward a common goal. Today, and in that same spirit, The Iowa Independent is pleased to unveil a new community collaboration project, Factbook.
Although the typical process for special or topic-centric projects launched by news organizations is information gathering and distribution, Factbook is different. That is, we don’t simply want to feed you what we know.
We want to build something with you.
At its core, Factbook is an Iowa-centric wiki, a software platform that lends itself to community collaboration. Our staff has given it a start — planted some seeds, if you will — and we will continue to nurture and cultivate the project for years to come. While there is no doubt that each of us already connected to Factbook have certain expectations and excitement about what it will be a month or a year from now, we also understand that opening it up to the larger community inherently means that this is no longer all about us or our goals. This truly is about what you and the community as a whole thinks is important, deserves highlighting or needs to be preserved.
For today, check out our beginning stem of information on the 2012 candidates, look for upcoming political events in the calendar, or see if your favorite candidate is trending up or down in the archive of our exclusive Power Rankings. But after you’ve had an opportunity to look around, go ahead and set up your own account on the system and start adding what you know to the mix.
Along the way, if you have any problems or suggestions, be sure to let us know.
Do you know where to vote on Election Day? Do you know what to bring with you? Get comprehensive voter information for your state here.
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