MTV will interview President Obama for a live half-hour special to air on the MTV channels Friday at 5 PM. MTV correspondent Sway Calloway will interview Obama in the White House, while Andrew Jenks will be at a nearby college campus watching with young voters. Jenks will also host an online discussion before and after the interview.
MTV will be soliciting questions from viewers on its Facebook page, with Calloway choosing the best ones to ask the President. As for Obama’s GOP challenger Mitt Romney: “MTV has invited Governor Romney to participate in a live, 30 minute special as well, and hopes to also conduct a sit down interview with him in advance of Election Day,” said the network in a statement.
Much friendlier than MTV’s cold-hearted colleagues at Nick News. In 2008, Obama participated in a similar MTV forum, while Sen. John McCain declined to appear.
More information:
MTV SITS DOWN WITH PRESIDENT OBAMA FOR LIVE 30-MINUTE SPECIAL
AIRING FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26 AT 5:00 P.M. (ET LIVE / PT DELAYED)Young People can Submit Questions for the President on MTV’s Facebook Page
Tweet It: President @BarackObama answers young voter’s questions live on @mtv Fri. at 5! Submit your questions now: http://on.fb.me/RpO8BW
New York, NY (October 23, 2012) — As part of MTV’s “Power of 12” election campaign, President Barack Obama will directly address the concerns of young voters in “ASK OBAMA LIVE: An MTV Interview with the President,” which will air live Friday, October 26 at 5:00 p.m. ET/ Tape Delayed PT across MTV’s screens including MTV, MTV2, mtvU, MTV Hits, and MTV Jams, and on MTV.com and MTV’s mobile platform. The half-hour special will feature MTV News Correspondents Sway Calloway, who will sit down with the President in the White House, and Andrew Jenks, who will be on-the-ground at a college campus in Washington D.C. with a group of young voters. MTV.com will also host a live-stream discussion with Andrew Jenks before and after the special.
Beginning today, the MTV audience can submit questions for the President on MTV’s Facebook page. Forty-five million 18-29 year olds are eligible to vote in this election, representing the largest potential voting bloc in the country. MTV’s “ASK OBAMA LIVE: an MTV Interview with the President” marks the first time in this campaign that either President Obama or Governor Romney have focused solely on young voter’s top concerns — including jobs, the cost of college, rising student loan debt, social issues like LGBTQ rights, and immigration, to name a few — on a nationally televised program. MTV has invited Governor Romney to participate in a live, 30 minute special as well, and hopes to also conduct a sit down interview with him in advance of Election Day.
Building on MTV’s nearly 20-year Emmy and Peabody Award-winning political legacy with “Choose or Lose,” MTV’s “Power of 12” campaign is built specifically to reflect the Millennial generation and changes in the economic and political climate, and is designed to empower them to have a major impact on Election Day and beyond. A signature element of the campaign is “Fantasy Election ’12,” which gives young people a new way to hold candidates accountable and rewards them for getting involved in the 2012 elections. Similar to Fantasy Football, “Fantasy Election ‘12” enables users to draft a team of candidates pursuing the presidency or congress, earning and losing points based on how their players behave in the real world.
For information on MTV’s “Power of 12” campaign please visit www.Powerof12.org or to follow MTV News’ political coverage, head to www.MTV.com/news. For more information on “Fantasy Election ‘12” or to start a league, head to FantasyElection.MTV.com.
About Sway Calloway:
Sway Calloway is pivotal member of the MTV News team and voice to the millennial generation. From giving Eminem and Notorious B.I.G. their very first radio airplay on his local show in the mid-’90s, to amassing an impressive list of exclusive interviews from the likes U2 front man Bono to Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Lil Wayne, Tom Cruise, Tyler Perry, Nicki Minaj, Chris Brown and Kanye West, he has been a staple of the music-news arena for more than a decade and delivered some of television’s most ground breaking moments. Beyond music, Sway has been a key correspondent on a host of issues impacting young people from politics and young veteran’s issues, to hate-crimes, education and sexual health. He has reported from the Democratic and Republican National Conventions, and interviewed political leaders such as President Bill Clinton and President Barack Obama, as well as Senator John McCain, Secretary of State and former Senator Hillary Clinton, Governor Mike Huckabee and Governor Mitt Romney.About Andrew Jenks:
Andrew Jenks is an award-winning filmmaker, creator of MTV’s critically-acclaimed series “World of Jenks” and a correspondent for MTV’s 2012 Election campaign, “Power of 12.” As the face of MTV’s “Power of 12” campaign, Jenks is charged with informing, engaging and amplifying the voices of his generation throughout the 2012 election. In the reinvented second season of “World of Jenks,” Jenks will bring a new approach to his storytelling as he captures the unforgettable journeys of three young people and their unique experiences over the course of a year. His book ANDREW JENKS: MY ADVENTURES AS A YOUNG FILMMAKER comes out March 2013.About MTV:
MTV is the world’s premier youth entertainment brand. With a global reach of more than a half-billion households, MTV is the cultural home of the millennial generation, music fans and artists, and a pioneer in creating innovative programming for young people. MTV reflects and creates pop culture with its Emmy®, Grammy® and Peabody® award-winning content built around compelling storytelling, music discovery and activism across TV, online and mobile. MTV’s sibling networks MTV2 and mtvU each deliver unparalleled customized content for young males, music fans and college students, and its online hub MTV.com is a leading destination for music, news and pop culture. MTV is a unit of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. For more information, go to www.mtvpress.com.