MEDIA ADVISORY: Texas Election Cybersecurity Workshop Tuesday
On Tuesday, September 1, 2020, the USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative will host a free online Texas workshop, offering resources to campaigns, election workers, elected officials, academics, media and concerned citizens to reinforce election cybersecurity measures.
Contact: Tiffany Shackelford (703) 470-2996 or tshackel@usc.edu; Emily Gersema, (213) 740-6973 or gersema@usc.edu; or Ted Kissell, (714) 316-8808 or tkissell@usc.edu
Congressmen Michael McCaul and Will Hurd and other experts from around Texas will lead discussions on election cybersecurity on Tuesday afternoon with state and local officials, and campaign representatives to help improve election cybersecurity in Texas. Topics will include cyber safety, disinformation and misinformation, and crisis communications.
The USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative, supported by a generous gift from Google, is an independent, bipartisan effort to strengthen election cybersecurity through workshops held for each of the 50 states.
“We are going to all 50 states, in person when possible or virtually when we cannot, to make certain information about best practices is available to everyone, but especially for those in campaigns and elections,” said Adam Clayton Powell III, executive director of the project. “We are a national campaign, and our candidate is democracy.”
The initiative kicked off in January in Maryland, drawing experts in national security, elected officials, as well as journalists and concerned members of the public. It continued to Ohio, California, Kentucky, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arkansas, Virginia, Louisiana, Wyoming, Iowa, South Carolina, Delaware, Montana, Utah, Missouri, Alabama, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Connecticut, Kansas, Idaho, Vermont, North Dakota, Nebraska, Washington, Maine, Oregon, Florida, Illinois, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Colorado, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Mexico, North Carolina, New Jersey and now Texas.
“In advance of the 2020 election, we are committed to enhancing election security for voters, campaigns and journalists alike,” said Kristie Canegallo, vice president of Google’s Trust and Safety team. “We’re proud to support USC’s Election Security and Information Project to
provide comprehensive training to candidates, campaigns, academics, elected officials, and NGOs to help them prepare for security challenges before the 2020 election.”
“As we work to complete our 50 state campaign leading up to election day 2020, we are excited to bring our workshop to Texas. We will be joined by leading journalists, civic leaders, and elected officials including Congressman Will Hurd, a cybersecurity expert, Sharon Jarvis, Associate Director of the Annette Strauss Initiative, and many more,” said Justin Griffin, the initiative’s Managing Director.
WHAT: USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative. The topics covered include cyber safety, disinformation and misinformation, and crisis communication.
WHO: Experts speaking include:
- Michael McCaul, United States Representative
- Will Hurd, United States Representative
- Ted Cruz, United States Senator
- Karl Rove, Former Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor to President George W. Bush
- Sharon Jarvis, Associate Professor of Communication Studies; Associate Director of the Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life, University of Texas at Austin
- Jenifer Sarver, Chair, Women’s Public Leadership Network
- Tony Plohetski, Senior Reporter, KVUE-TV; Reporter, Austin American-Statesman
- Clifford Neuman, Director, USC Center for Computer Systems Security; Senior Project Leader, USC Information Sciences Institute; and Associate Research Professor of Computer Science, USC Viterbi School of Engineering
- Dave Quast, Adjunct Professor, USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism; Crisis Communications and Public Affairs Consultant
- Sarah Mojarad, Lecturer, USC Viterbi School of Engineering
- Adam Clayton Powell III, Executive Director, USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative, and former USC Vice Provost
- Justin Griffin, Managing Director, USC Election Cybersecurity Initiative, and veteran of corporate reputation and political campaigns
WHERE: Zoom Event. You will receive credentials upon registration.
WHEN: Tuesday, September 1, 2020 1:30 – 3:45 PM Central Time
REGISTRATION: To attend, register here: http://bit.ly/usctx-workshop-mediaadvisory
MORE INFORMATION: The initiative is led by the USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy, established by University Professor Geoffrey Cowan, who is the principal investigator for the USC Elections Cybersecurity Initiative. For more background on CCLP, please visit its website.