REDMOND, Wash., Feb. 8, 1996 — NBC News and Microsoft Corp. will launch Decision ’96, a new interactive online service that will deliver updated news and information surrounding the candidates, issues and elections of 1996. The service will feature complete election and survey results, interactive events with news makers and experts, voter information for all 50 states, special reports from the campaign trail, and an election simulation game.
Decision ’96 will be on the World Wide Web at http://www.decision96.MSN.com with links from the NBC site, http://www.nbc.com. Decision ’96 will premiere Monday, Feb. 12, as the Iowa caucuses kick off the presidential race.
“We’re working closely with Microsoft to create the definitive online source for election coverage,”
said Bill Wheatley, vice president of news at NBC News and executive producer of NBC’s campaign coverage in 1992.
“This is a unique way for NBC News to take campaign reporting to a new level, permitting us to widen the debate and involve users in it in a more personal, interactive manner.”
“Decision ’96 online will complement television election coverage by making news makers and NBC correspondents accessible to those outside the Beltway,”
said Laura Jennings, executive producer of MSN
™
, The Microsoft Network.
“Decision ’96 online will offer our audience the opportunity to get involved, get more information and participate in the political process like never before.”
The service will combine NBC’s vast editorial and news-gathering resources and Microsoft’s interactive technology expertise. NBC News retains complete editorial control over the accuracy and integrity of the service’s content.
Contributors to Decision ’96 will include the highly regarded PoliticsUSA Web service, which will offer political news and reference material, including the Almanac of American Politics; the League of Women Voters Education Fund, which will provide nonpartisan information on voter registration and state ballot initiatives around the country, as well as
co-sponsor online events; and Byron Preiss Multimedia Co., which will provide a campaign simulation game.
Through Decision ’96, users can:
-
Stay on top of daily developments in the presidential race, with reports from NBC News, RealAudio sound clips, complete results of NBC News and Wall Street Journal polls, and transcripts of major political speeches and events.
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Interact with NBC News correspondents and experts from the campaign trail, beginning with Tim Russert, moderator of
“Meet the Press,”
in an online chat session on the eve of the New Hampshire primary, Monday, Feb. 19 (10 p.m. EST). -
Compare the records and views of major candidates, as well as keep track of events on the trail, campaign spending, political advertising and polling.
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Zero in on local politics by accessing details on every state primary and caucus, as well as a profile of every governor, U.S. senator and representative from the Almanac of American Politics. Users will be able to focus on their congressional district by simply typing in their ZIP Code®
. -
Share their opinions on political matters through e-mail and other interactive features.
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See if they have what it takes to win the presidency with Darkhorse: The Virtual Campaign Game, a game by Byron Preiss Multimedia. When the game debuts in March, players will vie for visibility, votes and money as they navigate the primary and caucus season. Later this year, as the political conventions take center stage, a new, general-election version of the game will come online.
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Revisit America’s rich political heritage with multimedia features drawing on the comprehensive NBC News Archives.
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Enjoy the political humor of NBC late-night stars including Jay Leno, Conan O’Brien and Greg Kinnear in a feature debuting this spring.
Decision ’96 is the latest effort of NBC Interactive Media and Microsoft to bring original information, entertainment and events programming to online users. NBC Interactive Media oversees NBC’s online activities as well as its two online services: NBC SuperNet on MSN and the NBC httv Web site. Both services offer content-rich interactive areas for news, sports, entertainment, NBC stations, and CNBC as well as new content not based on NBC programming.
NBC News is one of the world’s most-watched news organizations and a leading producer and distributor of news programming. Later this year, NBC News and Microsoft will launch MSNBC, a 24-hour news and information cable channel, and a companion online service.
PoliticsUSA is a service of National Journal Inc., one of Washington’s premier political news and reference publishers, and the American Political Network, publisher of Hotline, the leading political news wire. The New York-based Byron Preiss Multimedia Company Inc. (NASDAQ
“CDRM”
) develops and publishes high-quality multimedia software and online services for the consumer, education and small-business markets. The League of Women Voters Education Fund is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, charitable organization that works to encourage the active and informed participation of citizens in government and to increase understanding of major public policy issues.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.
Microsoft and MSN are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
ZIP Code is a registered trademark of the U.S. Postal Service.
The Microsoft Network is operated by Microsoft Corp. on behalf of Microsoft LLC.
