The Entertainment Software Association, though its Videogame Voters Network, has kicked off its new drive to get gamers to register to vote.
Play For Real: Gamer Voter Drive, the ESA’s new initiative, aims to rally American gamers to head to the polls and make their interests known. The specific goal is to get enough gamers registered to make a substantive difference in America’s November midterm elections.
According to ESA President Doug Lowenstein, the effort is aimed to give gamers an organized platform from which to contribute to the political arena. “Tens of thousands of voting-aged gamers have joined the Video Game Voters grassroots political network,” he said. “Unfortunately, polls show that less than half of 18-to-29-year-olds turned out in the 2004 election.”
Beyond simple voting registration, the campaign also encourages more focused action. Specifically, it encourages awareness about The Family Entertainment Protection Act. According to the VGVN, this legislation, introduced and championed by controversial Senators Hillary Clinton and Joe Lieberman, would “regulate the sale of certain video games throughout the country.” They urge gamers to contact their members of congress in protest of this “[stifling of] constitutionally-protected creativity in a medium that is at the cutting-edge of innovative entertainment.”
A form letter drawn up by the VGVN can be viewed and sent here.
