The UpTake is a

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

-based citizen journalist organization. It was founded in July 2007 and has provided

online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" o ...

news coverage on a low budget since. Because of its role as a provider of citizen journalism, the UpTake is a not-for-profit organization. As such, many of its journalists have to rely on technology, such as cell phone cameras, technically outclassed by professional equipment. This financial disadvantage has spurred the UpTake to develop innovative methods of low-cost information gathering and reporting, such as live broadcasting from cell phone camera feeds.

2008 Minnesota Senate election

The UpTake's profile increased dramatically during the disputed 2008 U.S. Senate election in Minnesota, the home state of the UpTake. The UpTake provided full coverage of the

recount An election recount is a repeat tabulation of votes cast in an election that is used to determine the correctness of an initial count. Recounts will often take place if the initial vote tally during an election is extremely close. Election reco ...

process, winning accolades and citations from fellow news blogs FiveThirtyEight.com and

MinnPost.com ''MinnPost'' is a nonprofit online newspaper in Minneapolis, founded in 2007, with a focus on Minnesota news. Funding ''MinnPosts initial funding of $850,000 came from four families: John and Sage Cowles, Lee Lynch and Terry Saario, Joel and ...

and local Minnesota news outlets such as the '' Minnesota Independent''. On January 5, 2009, when the final batch of absentee ballots in the recount were opened, checked, sorted, and counted, The UpTake broadcast the entire process live via streaming video on TheUpTake.org. Its initial count for

Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to i ...

candidate

Al Franken Alan Stuart Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an American comedian, politician, media personality, and author who served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 2009 to 2018. He gained fame as a writer and performer on the television comed ...

's lead after the absentee ballots were sorted aloud was 223; the number appeared on breaking reports on other websites, including FiveThirtyEight.com, until an election official announced that Franken's unofficial lead was actually 225.

Recognition

The Center for Public Integrity listed the UpTake as one of its "Top Ten Websites from 2008". In a tongue-in-cheek reference to an infamous ballot challenge by

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

candidate

Norm Coleman Norman Bertram Coleman Jr. (born August 17, 1949) is an American politician, attorney, and lobbyist. From 2003 to 2009, he served as a United States Senator for Minnesota. From 1994 to 2002, he was mayor of Saint Paul, Minnesota. First elected ...

's campaign, the list identified the UpTake as: On January 18, 2011, the UpTake announced it had become the first online-only news organization to get a seat in the Minnesota Capitol press room.Citizen Media Now Has A Seat In The Capitol Press Room
/ref>

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:UpTake News agencies based in the United States Non-profit organizations based in Minnesota 2007 establishments in Minnesota Organizations established in 2007

2008 Minnesota Senate election

Recognition

See also

References

External links