TV

"Follow the Money" and you'll find the truth. The phrase has been invoked in crime novels and newsrooms, almost as a mantra for the successful investigator. For the journalist and the voter, researching campaign finances is a difficult task, that is, unless your guides are Ellen Miller, Executive Director of the Center for Responsive Politics and Chuck Lewis, Executive Director of the Center for Public Integrity. The Radio and Television News Directors Foundation brings these two advocates together for 13 shows that will run through May 8. Both of their organizations have compiled databases from which you can follow the money. Their insights are also available as Democracy Place TV presents the "Follow the Money".

"Most elected officials would rather undergo root canal surgery than discuss the special interests behind their candidacies. We think the American people, before the election, should have all the relevant information about the candidates--including the price of acquiring power and what has been sold in the process."

Charles Lewis, Founder and Executive Director
Center for Public Integrity

"Campaign contributions have had a long and seedy history in U. S. politics, but there is no worse period than now. The Center's job is to explore the highways and byways of campaign cash in federal elections, shining a spotlight on who gives what to whom and what contributors get in return."