I’ll be reporting live from the White House — and you can be there virtually, too.
There aren’t many things more exciting than being invited to the White House. At least not to me. So you can imagine how thrilled I was to learn I’d been selected as one of the lucky social media users who will attend the #SOTUSocial at the White House.
I’ll be there in person for President Obama’s State of the Union address — before, during and after. I’ll use Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and other social media channels to share my thoughts on the speech. Our group will also meet with White House officials immediately following the SOTU, when we’ll have a chance to ask them questions about the speech and the legislative agenda it will outline.
In addition to the speech being broadcast on TV at 9 p.m. ET, the White House will stream an enhanced version at WhiteHouse.gov/SOTU that combines the speech with graphics and charts — and, very possibly, some of what the #SOTUSocial team will share. If you stick with the stream after the speech, you can see us interact with senior White House officials. What’s more, you can ask questions of your own using the hashtag #WHChat. You can also submit your questions directly to me in a comment below, and I’ll ask them if I can.
According to the White House, this is “the most accessible and interactive SOTU yet.”
It’s an amazing opportunity to be in the midst of the moment — not just for me, but for everyone who will be there with me and watching at home. It’s the chance to have your voice heard by people who work directly with President Obama to shape public policy.
However you participate, I hope you’ll be part of this. The White House is engaging citizens across the country. They want to hear from us.
You can follow me and my fellow #SOTUSocial attendees by using the hashtag. You can find me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. I’ll probably start sharing my experience a little after 8 p.m. ET.
I won’t know until you do what the President is going to say in his State of the Union address, but the White House has told us the speech will focus on three things: opportunity, action and optimism.
I like the sound of it already.
