KUT News Examines Causes of Low Civic Engagement

Tune in for our broadcast on Sunday, Oct. 7 at 5 p.m.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

KUT News has begun a reporting and outreach series on low voter turnout and civic engagement in Central Texas. The series will include reporting on what exactly is behind consistent low voter turnout, the impact of changing demographics on civic participation, and what it will take to get more citizens involved in Austin city government and planning.

Our reporting series is part of a broader initiative, Why Bother? Engaging Texans in Democracy Today, in partnership with the Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life and KLRU-TV, Austin PBS. Why Bother? Engaging Texans in Democracy Today is a news and public dialogue series intended to get people talking about why Texas has one of the lowest rates of civic engagement in the world, and what we can do about it.

We’re also co-hosting, with the Annette Strauss Institute and KLRU, a series of four public forums addressing these issues. The first forum, Why Bother? Voices of a New Generation, is a conversation with young Texans — those who are engaged and not — about the causes of low civic participation and how to boost it.

For additional information about the series and the civic engagement crisis in central Texas, visit www.whybothertexas.org.

Add your voice to the discussion. Like Why Bother? Engaging Texans in Democracy Today on Facebook and follow on Twitter.