Sam Adams Alliance

The Sam Adams Alliance is a right wing organization based in Chicago, Illinois whose mission is to agitate for advance economic and individual liberty through a strategic combination of new media tools and traditional communications.

The organization takes its name from the American patriot Sam Adams, who is considered the "father of the American Revolution" for his role in connecting colonists in the 18th century American colonies. Adams allowed them to share information and experience with each other in the hope of instigating a popular effort against the British. The Sam Adams Alliance has adopted this strategy of action - social media - as a way of increasing government accountability and transparency on the local level.

Programs

The Sam Adams Alliance strives to educate and inform citizens about political issues through new media tools, a set of wiki projects: [http://www.ballotpedia.org Ballotpedia,] [http://www.judgepedia.org Judgepedia,] and [http://wwww.sunshinereview.org Sunshine Review.]

In addition, the Sam Adams Alliance host a free-market minded blogging community called [http://www.blogivists.com Blogivists] .

One of its main website initiatives is profiling what it calls "Modern-Day Sam Adamses," people it finds who demonstrate citizen leadership in accordance with its mission. [cite web| title = The Sam Adams Alliance - Modern-Day Sam Adams Hall of Fame | publisher =The Sam Adams Alliance | author = | date = | url = http://www.samadamsalliance.org/publication/id.300/default.asp/ | accessdate = 2007-06-28 ] Additionally, the Sam Adams Alliance produces a radio show called "Common Sense" with Paul Jacob, which is broadcast on over 150 radio stations nationwide. The program appears on the group's website in both audio and text forms. [cite web| title = The Sam Adams Alliance - Common Sense | publisher =The Sam Adams Alliance | author = | date = | url = http://www.samadamsalliance.org/commonsense | accessdate = 2007-06-28 ]

About Ballotpedia

Ballotpedia.org gives voters information on all things related to ballots, amendments, initiatives, school bond elections, recalls and referendums. It breaks down ballot measures by [http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/2008_ballot_measures year] and [http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Ballot_Initiative_Report%2C_2008 state.]

About Judgepedia

Judgepedia.org brings sunshine on a little understood -but powerful- branch of government: judiciary. It provides quick information on the court system, all [http://judgepedia.org/index.php/2008_State_Supreme_Court_Elections 338 state Supreme Court justices,] and judicial elections. Each judges profile details their judicial philosophy, endorsements, campaign contributions, memberships, and appointments.

About Sunshine Review

Sunshine Review.org is a transparency website dedicated at evaluating the accessibility of government information and data on government websites. The website calls calls on public officials at all levels of state and local government to disclose public information--online, proactively and voluntarily. Sunshine Review is starting to evaluate all 3,140 county websites through its [http://sunshinereview.org/index.php/Portal:My_Government_Website My Government transparency checklist.]

Recently, Sunshine Review was featured in [http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/149613/new_web_sites_focus_on_empowering_voters.html PC World] and [http://www.2theadvocate.com/opinion/27745259.html the Louisiana Advocate] for its effort to increase transparency at the local and state level.

Policy Positions

The Sam Adams Alliance works on behalf of individuals and groups who advocate for greater government accountability and transparency at the local and state level. As such, the organizations do not take overt policy positions, and evaluate the causes it supports on a case-by-case basis, judging them by the amount to which they advance accountability and transparency in government.

Funding

The Sam Adams Alliance are not endowed and do not accept government funding. The organization is funded by private donors. [cite web| title = The Sam Adams Alliance - Donate | publisher =The Sam Adams Alliance | author = | date = | url = http://www.samadamsalliance.org/donate/ | accessdate = 2007-06-28 ]

Personnel

Eric O'Keefe is the Chairman and CEO of the Sam Adams Alliance. John Tsarpalas is President of the Alliance. Additionally, political commentator Paul Jacob serves as a Senior Adviser to the groups. [cite web| title = The Sam Adams Alliance - Leadership | publisher =The Sam Adams Alliance | author = | date = | url = http://www.samadamsalliance.org/about/id.321/default.asp | accessdate = 2007-06-28 ]

References

External links

* [http://www.samadamsalliance.org/ The Sam Adams Alliance website]
* [http://www.ballotpedia.org/ Ballotpedia website]
* [http://www.judgepedia.org/ Judgepedia website]
* [http://www.sunshinereview.org/ Sunshine Review wesbite]
* [http://blogivists.com/ Blogivists website]