LGBT Center to give away 20 DNC credentials to LGBT media

CHARLOTTE — Twenty lucky LGBT bloggers, citizen journalists and independent media will get the opportunity to attend events related to the Democratic National Convention in two weeks, courtesy a special giveaway from the LGBT Community Center of Charlotte and The PPL.

Funded by a grant from the local Wesley Mancini Foundation, the two organizations will give away 20 credentialed spots to The PPL’s coworking and event space in Uptown Charlotte. The venue is located just blocks from the Time Warner Cable Arena and Bank of America Stadium where official DNC-related activities will take place Sept. 4-6.

The PPL say their space will serve as the hub of activity for over 1,000 independent artists, bloggers and citizen journalists during the DNC. The group is a the result of a grassroots effort to organize coworking space and provide event space and programming for the scores of unaccredited media expected to join the 15,000-some credentialed journalists attending the convention.

In a release, the LGBT Center and The PPL said the space would create a “diverse, creative community of non-credentialed bloggers, journalists, photographers, artists, and activists who will collectively provide the voice of healthy, respectful political discourse.”

“We are excited to partner with the LGBT Community Center of Charlotte because we believe in media diversity and part of that means ensuring the LGBT community’s voice is present during this historic time,” The PPL Co-Founder Desiree Kane said in Thursday’s release.

Center staff say they welcome the participation of LGBT voices in Charlotte.

“This partnership is a fantastic opportunity for the LGBT community to have access to incredible media resources during the DNC to increase the visibility and the voice of our community during the DNC,” said O’Neale Atkinson, operations manager of The LGBT Community Center of Charlotte. “We could not be more pleased to work alongside The PPL on this initiative and believe that this partnership embodies the spirit of the Wesley Mancini Foundation’s grant.”

Individuals interested in applying for the giveaway can click here to learn more and to apply. The application must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, August 26. Winners will be notified the following week.

About the author: Matt Comer was the editor of QNotes, first hired to serve in the role in October 2007, with his tenure ending August 23, 2015.