Press Releases 2009

Secretary Clinton to Conduct Digital Town Hall of the Americas

April 17, 2009

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will conduct Digital Town Hall of the Americas, a live web-based discussion, from the Dominican Republic on Friday, April 17, 2009 at 11:15 AM ET (Panama Time) in anticipation of the Fifth Summit of the Americas to be held April 17-19 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. The event will provide an opportunity for Secretary Clinton to launch a conversation with citizens from across the Western Hemisphere to discuss the Summit’s themes of securing our citizens’ future by promoting human prosperity, energy security and environmental sustainability, as well as the situation in Haiti, where she will visit and attend meetings on Wednesday, April 15.

Digital Town Hall of the Americas will be streamed live on the Department of State’s Social Media Hub for the Fifth Summit of Americas (http://townhall.america.gov), powered by Howcast. Content will also be featured on Ustream, Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, Twitter, Orkut, and Hi-5. Secretary Clinton will answer questions submitted through these sites prior to the event as well as from the local Dominican audience in attendance. Please refer to the above web site for further detail on the Digital Town Hall of the Americas as it becomes available, including confirmed time and venue.

Adding background and perspective to the discussion that will take place between the region’s 34 democratically-elected leaders, the site will feature videos on the following topics: “What is the Summit of the Americas?” “How do I benefit from the Summit of the Americas?” “How are we connected in the Americas?” And, “How can I participate in meeting the Summit of the Americas goals?” The Hub will continue as an information resource after the Summit, providing community forums on topics of interest for the hemisphere and serving as a repository for all documents related to U.S. Summit participation.