Press’ Category

Fern Marcya Edison
(P) 845.679.6319

(E) fern@erichopr.com

PE.com

24, Sep 2009

Read, grasp, vote: Push legislators to nix long, cryptic bills, pass simple laws instead -Read Article

The Washington Post

23, Sep 2009

Read This!: Can legislators really read every word of every bill? -Read Article

Read The Comments

READ TO VOTE

21, Sep 2009

MEDIA CONTACT:

Fern Marcya Edison
(P) 845.679.6319
(E) fern@erichopr.com

UPDATE: READTOVOTE.ORG GAINS MOMENTUM AS OVER 50,000 POTENTIAL
VOTERS SIGN PLEDGE TO READ THE HEALTHCARE OR CAP AND TRADE BILL
BEFORE DEBATING SOUNDBITES

WHILE STILL AWAITING PERMISSION TO CHALK THE STEPS OF THE CAPITOL –
EVERY MEMBER OF THE HOUSE AND SENATE CAN EXPECT 24X36 INCH
“POSTCARDS” THIS WEEK…WITH ALL 156,425 WORDS OF THE HEALTHCARE
BILL ON IT, A PAIR OF READING GLASSES TO HELP WITH THE FINE PRINT

New York, NY (Sept. 21, 2009)— After launching their new educational initiative on September 8, 2009, the co-founders of ReadToVote.org, Mark DiMassimo and Eric Yaverbaum, became increasingly animated as they made countless media appearances and witnessed the rapid response they got from the general public. It wasn’t only due to their excitement over the 50,000-plus everyday Americans who had signed-on at the site to become more educated about exactly what is in the proposed bills. What largely drove Yaverbaum and DiMassimo was the jaw-dropping zero U.S. Senators and Congressmen who have taken the pledge to date.

“While it’s very gratifying to see how engaged the public has become with the details of some of the most vital issues and highly sensitive legislation we have seen as a country, I’m certain that this same public shares our disappointment to discover that the people we elected to guide this country aren’t willing to make the very same pledge,” commented Yaverbaum. He added, “I sincerely hope the leadership of this country realizes that if the people who vote to put them in office feel the same as we do, some politicians may find votes harder to get in the future.”

DiMassimo, the advertising veteran and creative force behind the duo’s oft-discussed iconic marketing and social buzz, said, “Bills appear to be written to discourage readership. The original U.S. Constitution was 12 pages. The health bill: 1018 pages. Until we have elected officials reading what they pass, we believe this is an issue to respectfully raise, with as much flair as we can muster.” DiMassimo went on to say, “Everyone on the hill can expect to be hearing from us regularly until this changes.”

The group isn’t waiting for their return phone call and permission from the Capitol Hill Police to start their chalking initiative, to take further action. They do remain hopeful they’ll be able to engage their 1018 ‘chalkers’ (recruited from their advertising launch) to write the pages of America’s Affordable Health Choices Act on the steps of the Capital building one page at a time, however,  “While we wait, we’re sending the same message directly to every Congressman and Senator via enormous ‘postercards’  that contain — in tiny writing — every word of the Healthcare bill, along with a pair of reading glasses, to draw more attention to the issue,” explained DiMassimo. Yaverbaum noted that the group has a significantly larger responsibility now than two weeks ago, with over 50,000 people already pledged and watching and, as important, voting (or perhaps not)… for those who won’t make the same pledge.”

Founded and financed by the high profile marketing duo behind the widely lauded and influential “Tappening”campaign (http://www.tappening.com), ReadtoVote.org (http://www.ReadtoVote.org) was launched as a nonpartisan reaction to the confusion and seemingly unending debate surrounding what’s actually in the critically important Health and Energy bills.

________________________________________________________________________

Mark DiMassimo and Eric Yaverbaum, co-founders of ReadtoVote.org,
are available for interview upon request.

“Postercards” being sent to elected officials available upon request.

———————————————————————————————————————–

About ReadtoVote.org: Co-founders of the highly acclaimed Tappening movement, Mark DiMassimo and Eric Yaverbaum, aim to create increased awareness and inspire all elected officials, as well as the general public, to actually read the bills being debated in our nation. ReadtoVote.org asks for a pledge to read these bills, and provides a link that allows visitors to easily download the major bills currently before Congress.

About Tappening: Founded in November 2007 by Mark DiMassimo and Eric Yaverbaum, Tappening is an educational campaign designed to encourage the public to drink only tap water, and to send a message to the bottled water industry about its unnecessary and extreme waste of fossil fuels and resultant pollution of the Earth.

About DIGO: The advertising, design, and digital Agency for a Social World™, New York City–based DIGO (short for DiMassimo Goldstein) was founded by Mark DiMassimo in 1996. Prior to that, DiMassimo created pioneering digital and interactive programs for blue chip clients, led creative on some of the most successful launches of all time, including those for the AT&T Universal Card and the Citibank AAdvantage Card, and rose to the top of the direct marketing world before jumping to a prime creative position at a boutique shop that he helped build into a thriving integrated powerhouse in only three years. When DiMassimo launched DIGO with one employee (a strategist), it quickly became one of the fastest-growing agencies in the U.S. Working with visionary clients on innovative business models, the agency evolved a unique approach that reflected the new world of the consumer.

DIGO clients have included a mix of innovative growth companies, blue chips, and social causes, including Crunch Fitness, Pfizer, Gateway, Tappening, Rare Conservation, American Red Cross, Comcast, Starwood, ESPN, thinkorswim, Investools, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, J.H. Cohn, and TV Guide.com, among others. For more information, visit http://www.digobrands.com

About Ericho Communications: Founded  by 28 year industry public relations veteran and best-selling author Eric Yaverbaum, Ericho Communications is a full-service public relations firm where green meets the latest that technology has to offer. The firm’s successes range from the recent launch of the first-ever video text messaging company to their partnership in CollegeClickTV.com to Tappening to work with Tibet. Yaverbaum is the former president of Jericho Communications, where he managed a who’s who of brand names for 21 years, including IKEA Home Furnishings, Domino’s Pizza, Subway Sandwiches and Salads, Progressive Insurance, TCBY, Sony, H&M, Bell Atlantic, American Express, and many more. Yaverbaum is also the author of five books (with a sixth to be published this December), including PR for Dummies, which is required reading in marketing classes at 57 U.S. universities. His last book, The Everything Leadership Book, was published in 2008. Ericho Communications has offices in New York City, White Plains, NY, and Tampa, Fla. For more information, visit http://www.erichopr.com.

Roll Call

15, Sep 2009

Heard on the Hill: Work of Art (Roll Call) -Read Article

Advertising Age

14, Sep 2009

Agency Creative Wants to Teach Congress to Read (Advertising Age) -Read Article

One News Now

10, Sep 2009

‘Chalking up’ the healthcare bill…literally (One News Now) -Read Article

Eric Yaverbaum, co-founder of ReadToVote.org, on Your World with Neil Cavuto

Eric Yaverbaum, co-founder of ReadToVote.org, on MSNBC with Contessa Brewer

Doctor Bulldog

9, Sep 2009

Chalk it Up to Obama’s Health Care Deform (Doctor Bulldog) -Read Blog

National Journal

8, Sep 2009

Read the Bill! (National Journal) -Read Article


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