The Tampa Bay Times in St. Petersburg, Florida, has launched a free SMS campaign to inform its readers about the latest presidential election updates and answer important questions. Since launching this month, Tampa Bay Times political reporter Steve Contorno has over 300 subscribers and has a 4% unsubscribe rate.
Readers who sign up for ConText 2020 receive voter information and news updates, plus policy and candidate information, with coverage from Times reporters and editors.
They also will get thoughts and insight from Political Editor Steve Contorno, and be able to ask him questions directly through their phone. When he answers, his responses go directly to the person who submitted the question and no one else.
ConText 2020 will operate through November, helping readers navigate the issues before Election Day and following events after Nov. 3 to put the results in perspective.
This text service uses a third-party app called Subtext, and was funded in part through a grant from the American Press Institute’s Trusted Elections Network Fund. Donors are not involved in the reporting or editing process.
“We’re thrilled to be working with the incredible team at the Tampa Bay Times on this important initiative. With all the vitriol and misinformation emanating from the social platforms this election, it’s more important than ever for readers to hear directly from trusted news sources in an accessible, friendly medium like text,” said Mike Donoghue, co-founder and CEO of Subtext.
