About
Votecastr[7] is a single-serving site designed to give Americans election results in real time throughout the 2016 United States Presidential Election day. It is a cause of concern and controversy because it upends a tradition in media to not disclose election day results until polls close, which news organizations have done to not potentially bias voters.
History
Votecastr is a private company from Ken Smukler, Sasha Issenburg, and Trevor Cornwell.[1] Described as a group of “data-scientists, journalists, and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs” by The New York Times,[2] the group first gained media attention on September 10th, 2016 when they were profiled by the Times. The group, which will have their information broadcast on Slate[4] and Vice,[5] is releasing information that is available to campaigns on election day. A New York Times[3] piece published the day before the election illustrated how the information made President Obama’s team nervous during the 2012 election. The New York Daily News[6] published an article in which they expressed fear that such information might depress voter turnout if they have it in real time.
Online Presence
As of November 7th, 2016, Votecastr has a limited social presence, with only 2,000 followers on Twitter.[8]
Search Interest
External References
[2]The New York Times – Real-Time Election Day Projections May Upend News Tradition
[3]New York Times – You May Need a Strong Stomach for the Pitfalls of Real-Time Election Projections
[4]Slate – Welcome to an Unprecedented Election Day Experiment
[5]Vice – For the first time ever, get real-time exit poll results from VICE News and VoteCastr
[6]New York Daily News – Fears VoteCastr’s new real-time tracking in swing states could depress voter turnout
[8]Twitter – @votecastr