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Review of Mashable first Digital Beltway Conference

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Briana Booker Press Member at Mashable Digital Beltway Conference.
Fromgirltogirl, Press Member at Digital Beltway Conference hosted by Mashable and the UN Foundation. Here is CEO and Founder of Mashable, Pete Cashmore.

By Briana Booker
On May 15th Fromgirltogirl.com , as a member of the press, was happy to attend the 1st annual Digital Beltway conference hosted by Mashable.com.

What is the Digital Beltway conference?

The Digital Beltway conference is a half-day event which explores how technology and digital resources drive change in U.S. global policy and politics. This year Mashable and the United Nations Foundation collaborated to bring the best of the best leadership in new media, technology, activism and government.

The 1st Digital Beltway event happened at the Newseum. It was very fitting to hold the event at the Newseum because Mashable.com is a website which values hearing news from the people, not just elected officials. When we can hear all sides of a story, we learn there’s always more to every story. I was very impressed with the dialog on the important issues of our time covered at the Digital Beltway conference.

The Newseum has stunning architecture and truly a must-see for news fanatics as it is engaging and highly interactive for visitors. When visiting the museum, you will have the opportunity to experience historical news coverage and explore new media.

In America, it’s easy to take trustworthy and honest media for granted as our First Amendment protects our media freedoms but we should not. The museum really gives visitors an appreciation for the constitutional rights we have as Americans.

The modern design of the building is a perfect addition to Washington D.C.’s historic Pennsylvania Avenue and there are so many great places to explore close to the Newseum. In one day I saw not only the Newseum but also the Justice Department, Ronald Reagan Building and the International Trade Center. Just to let everyone know, you can get lost in the maze of a parking garage at that site and screenings happen for all vehicles before entering the garage. On the plus side, it’s only blocks away from the Newseum.

For those passionate about journalism, new media, technology, education and social good initiatives, I highly recommend attending the next Digital Beltway conference. For being the first of its kind in the Washington D.C. Metropolitan area, the conversations impressed me, the speakers were phenomenal and Mashable’s smooth transitions during a live stream event were admirable.

I applaud the Mashable crew for being so well-organized and welcoming to both attendees and the press.

When I came into the Digital Media Lounge for the press, I thought it was really cool to see Mashable Founder and CEO , Pete Cashmore ,running around just like everyone else. He is not only very put together, but also really relatable.

If you’re wondering whether Pete Cashmore is just as attractive as seen on the web, the answer is yes. In fact, Pete is more attractive in person. Unfortunately ladies, he is not single, he has a gorgeous woman with a beautiful body and a kind soul ( no disrespect Pete, it’s just true).

Right off the bat, Pete welcomed the audience and told the story of how he got started as an entrepreneur. It is important for people to hear the stories of great entrepreneurs because they are living testimonies that greatness is possible with focus and grit. Here is Pete Cashmore – an inspiring, confident, and intelligent young man who never gave up on his vision. Instead, he brings people together to discuss how to make the world a better place.

What about the great speakers at the Digital Beltway event? I really enjoyed the ‘ Facebook: What’s New for the 2016 Presidential Run’ with Katie Harbath, Global Lead for Politics and Government Engagement at Facebook. Harbath’s interview was very interesting because it discussed the power of video for the 2016 elections. Facebook will feature videos that offer users a personal look into political campaigns. Harbath recommends political orient video content be 30 seconds or less – long enough to capture the attention of people, but short enough to increase share-ability. 2016 will be the year of video for those interested in sharing new media. Facebook will focus in particular to direct-to-camera-effect and believe this video format will work very well for politicians. And yes, Facebook video will have insight on what is working and not working with video shares, as Facebook data interactions are measurable by likes, comments, shares and some reposting.

What I took from that conversation: Engaging content matters no matter the industry and I admire Facebook taking the initiative to create Q & A  tools to help users ask questions and get replies right on Facebook from those in leadership roles. Right now Facebook is working on ways to offer insight for both leadership and users. When people feel listen to, a domino effect of positive change can happen. That in itself is a game changer.

I also appreciated Harbath’s emphasis on staying flexible and curious with new media formats. People want to see leaders comfortable with failure and willing to listen to people to find ways to solve major social and economic challenges. I believe Facebook has much to bring to the table because Facebook’s platform is all about discovery. Content on Facebook lasts longer than any other social platform, even Youtube.

A cool video sharing app you will want to keep your eye on is MeerKat.

MeerKat Rules: Live stream is new media

The dialogue with MeerKat App Founder, Ben Rubin, CEO and co-founder of Life on Air Inc., was awesome. If you don’t know about the MeerKat app, it’s a live video stream that can push to twitter followers in real-time. There is no such thing as a rerun with the MeerKat app and every stream can be restreamed by followers. In short, the MeerKat app is bringing web conversations to a whole new level and coming to Facebook soon.

Another speaker that really caught my attention was FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel because connecting more people through wifi will be essential to social and human rights progress.

I really respect the FCC’s efforts to help students stay connected to educational resources through the expansion of wifi, even on school buses. I think it’s great the FCC is working on ways to help entrepreneurs use mobile devices to get noticed and get their business initiatives off the ground. Increasing band width will be something global citizens and leadership can work together to carry out. I look forward to working with government to connect citizens by increasing their tech visibility. Vulnerable people matter. Journalists are important story tellers. Tech will change the world in great ways. Social development will improve quality of life for all, not just for some. It all starts with giving people of all walks a life the opportunity to broadcast their ideas, concerns and introduce innovation to communities most in need. Innovation is necessary for human rights and economic sustainability. It’s a big challenge to sort out information and implement technology in ways that benefit citizens but it’s possible. We have to work together to make it happen. It’s time to plant seeds of amazing ideas. It’s time to listen. It’s time to get things started and entrepreneurs can lead the movement by engaging with the community and government officials on deeper levels, more transparent institutional levels. This is what we call networking into action. Tolerant. Constructive. The pleasure of freedom of speech. It’s all possible when we put good people and great minds together. Thank you Mashable for bringing this to the attention of the larger community. The Digital Beltway can only get better and better from here. Here are other great moments from the Digital Beltway:

Briana Booker Washington DC Digital Media Strategist
Chief Editor of Fromgirltogirl.com

  If you would like Fromgirltogirl to cover your events as press, feel free to reach me at brianabooker@fromgirltogirl.com, Fromgirltogirl loves connecting with people in the community.   Check out upcoming posts for the photo gallery of the 2015 Digital Beltway.

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