America.gov (Washington, DC)
Susan Domowitz
8 July 2009
When President Obama visits Ghana July 10-11, he may be receiving a lot of text messages.
From now through July 11, Africans have the opportunity to pose questions for the president, and to let him know what's on their minds, via short message service (SMS) text messaging. And the president will respond to these texts -- or at least to some of them -- via radio. According to the White House, President Obama hopes to encourage a global "conversation."
The Obama White House, which pioneered the use of social media in the 2008 election, is now trying out social media -- specifically text messaging -- to reach audiences outside the United States. SMS text messaging was also used during Obama's June 4 speech in Cairo, when more than 5,000 people signed up.
How does this work? For President Obama's visit to Ghana, people all over Africa, even those without Internet access, can use SMS codes to send text messages, questions or comments to the president. (See "An Invitation to Africans: Send a Message to President Obama.")
President Obama will respond to some of the questions via radio, by recording a 30-minute podcast that local radio stations across Africa can download to air for their audiences.
"It makes sense," says Duncan MacInnes, a senior official in the State Department's Bureau of International Information Programs. "Radio is by far the most important medium in Africa for reaching people, and we also know that text messaging is very popular and widely available. We are working closely with the White House to put the two together."
According to the State Department, those who respond early will also receive text message highlights during President Obama's speech in Accra. Highlights of the speech will go out in English and French. In addition, Africans are invited to send comments on the president's visit. Selections from these comments will be posted on America.gov.
A young boy in South Africa uses a mobile phone. President Obama has invited Africans to send questions to him via short message service. His answers will be broadcast via radio throughout the continent.
President Obama has invited Africans to send questions to him via short message service, with his answers to be broadcast via radio.
Those calling from Ghana, Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria can text President Obama using short codes as follows:
Ghana 1730 (1731 for Vodafone subscribers)
Kenya 5683
South Africa 31958
Nigeria 32969
From the Central African Republic, callers should use +46737494514.
From Togo, callers should use +4915705000946.
From all other countries in Africa, callers should use +61418601934 or +45609910343.
Callers should indicate "English" or "French" in their texts to receive updates in the language of their choice. The capacity for these text messages is limited, so it is important to call early.
Those following President Obama's visit to Ghana will also be able to take part in the global conversation through blogs, by posting their comments to America.gov's Obama Today blog.
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